A Witchy Idea: The Past into the Future
by RobynHood3
Summary: With Battle City over, the past starts to catch up to Christine and the gang, bringing with it some familiar faces. The truth has to come out no matter how much you don't like it. Forgetting your past doesn't necessarily mean that it has forgotten you, it's just waiting for the right time. Fourth in the Witchy Idea Saga.
1. The Reunion of Friends

**Hi guys! As penance for being late, I'm giving you this first chapter now! I've been working on this next part of the saga for a long time and am very excited to share it with you all! The first four chapters are unique to my story of Yu-Gi-Oh! and the introduction to the circle! I base it heavily off of The Night World books circles so there is that explanation for when we get there. The first ones will have lots of references but only up to a certain point of 2016 which is when I imagine Christine leaving the modern world!**

***I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! I also don't own Dragon Age Inquisition, Lord of the Rings, Dead by Daylight or any other things I reference in this chapter! I only own Christine and Meg, my OCs!***

"What do you mean we can't get there today?!" Jounouchi was screaming at the man behind the desk.

"Exactly what I said, sir." The man replied back, a tick in his eyebrow revealing his annoyance. "The bus will not be available until Monday."

"What?!"

The rest of us were sitting a few feet away, our faces down in annoyance at our blond friend as well. I was leaning on Yugi's shoulders to try and alleviate some of the pain from my feet; there weren't a lot of places to sit down over here. We had walked all day from location to location trying to find this place.

My new charm kept bouncing into Yugi's hair, reminding me of memories that plagued my dreams now. They were so realistic and I almost believed that I was really remembering them. They were all of me as a kid in Egypt. Lady Isis was prevalent in them so I figured I was remembering the beginning and would eventually get to the end. Jounouchi's screeching woke me up from my remembrance.

The gang and I had flown out to California because we had been invited by Miho to visit her. Honda was ecstatic to see her but he definitely looked downtrodden when someone mentioned that she had a boyfriend. I was proud of the smile he kept on his face and moved forward.

While we were with her, someone had gotten Miho's number for Kaiba and was able to pass on a message for us. Kaiba was essentially holding us hostage. We couldn't return home to Japan until we came to his new park and participated in his new tournament. And apparently, dueling Yugi was the prize. I gave a loud sigh which caused Miho to give a bright laugh. Jounouchi growled at the actions but I could tell he was pumped at the idea of another tournament. Miho let us go on our way, catching her own bus to get back to her mother's house.

Meanwhile, two hours of constant walking and waiting later, we were still here trying to catch our own bus. "Grr!"

I sighed. I needed a drink.

"I'm gonna find a vending machine, kay?" I leaned down to whisper into Yugi's ear. "Need anything?"

"Nah, I'm ok." He replied.

"Kay kay."

I pulled myself off of the boy's shoulders and across the lane to the vending machines. I hummed to myself – probably the Hobbit theme or something – as I played with the money I had and tried to pick out what I wanted. I heard someone walk past me but there was no sign that they noticed me. The footsteps stopped dead in their tracks after a few paces.

"Who who is the girl with loyal friends and true?" A familiar voice half sang before snapping twice.

I blinked, movements stopping dead. I knew what it was immediately. But how….? I played along.

"Who who?" I replied with the snaps.

There was a small gasp before the voice continued.

"Who who has a bond as strong as crazy glue?" Double snaps again.

A wild smile was stretching across my face now.

"Who who?" Double snaps.

I turned around and saw a face I hadn't seen in over a year. My best friend's face hadn't changed at all. Her hazel eyes were bright and her smile pulled wide. Her dark brown hair was still short, hanging just above her shoulders. And the blue ribbon… it was still wrapped around her neck like the last time I had seen her.

"Who can sound the call and sisters all come through?"

"Who… who…" Tears suddenly began to stream down my cheeks but I held back a sob.

Footsteps approached me and I was wrapped in a tight hug. I returned it immediately and allowed my tears to escape. I couldn't hear anything else other than my best friend laughing lightly in my ear, teasing me for crying this much just from seeing her. I tried to whack her but she dodged and continued to laugh. When I pulled away, my best friend was all smiles.

"How've ya been, 'stine?"

I gave a watery laugh, wiping my tears away.

"My life has been extremely weird, Meggie."

"Your life has been weird without me?!" Meg replied, almost offended. "I'm hurt!"

I gave another laugh, wrapping my friend in another hug. "I'm glad to see you, 'stine." I gave a hum of approval.

"Christine?" Yugi's voice woke me up from my reverie.

I pulled away from Meg's hug and smiled at my friends' confused expressions. Yugi eyes were stuck on my face and I consciously wiped my face again. Sure enough, there were more tears streaming down my cheeks.

"Who's this?" Anzu asked.

I smiled, wrapping my arm around my first and best friend. Meg beamed in pride.

"Guys, this is Meg."

Meg gave a smile and a wave. Some of my friends waved back. "She and I know each other from home." I turned back to my friend quickly. "Though how are you here? I have been completely blocked off from there." Meg shrugged.

"I just woke up here." Meg replied. "I fell asleep one day about two months ago and wound up here. No one questions it and I can get away with pretty much everything. It's weird!"

I gave a hum. It wasn't the same way I got here… I reminded myself to tell her about how I got here; none of my friends, except for Yami of course, would understand. "And I take offense at your choice of words, 'stine!" I crossed my arms over my chest.

"How so?!"

"We don't just know each other! How long have we been friendos?!"

I gave a smile, scratching the back of my head. "Since we were six!"

"Right! Right!"

Meg gave a playful humph but it faded into a bright smile. "What are you doing here, Meggie?"

"I had yoga today." Meg pointed to her bag, which sat innocently a few feet away. "I pass by here and I heard the song of my little people!"

I burst into laughter. Of course she would recognize it. Everyone else looked confused but they seemed happy that I was laughing hysterically. "You guys trying to catch a bus?"

"Rich boy's up and marooned us!" Jounouchi grouched.

"We're being forced into his tournament." Yugi replied.

"Huh…" Meg crossed her arms, one of them reaching to her chin in thought. "The buses stopped nearly an hour ago so you guys won't be getting anywhere till Monday. Buuuut…."

Meg bounced her hip off mine. "You can stay at my place till then. I have a few guest rooms that are easily commandeered."

"Easily?" I teased.

Meg laughed loudly, yanking at my wrist to pull me out of the corner. The rest of the gang followed after us, catching up when Meg had to reach down for her bag. She had a large pair of headphones that she hung over her neck, not putting them on. My heart dropped. We walked a good way before I whispered to my friend. "Even here?" Meg's smile faded.

"Yeah… They're not bad but… they're annoying."

I gave a whine. "I'm fine, 'stine. Don't worry about me."

"I can't help it!"

"What's going on?" Anzu asked, jumping over to us.

Meg and I both hesitated in replying. We glanced over to each other, silently asking each other if it was ok to reply. Meg eventually shrugged her shoulders and I took it as her acceptance. I glanced over to the gang as we kept walking.

"Witches can have an array of abilities: elemental and mental. But sometimes… it doesn't end up like that."

"What do you mean?" Yugi asked, tilting his head curiously.

I was going to try and word it in a way that was delicate and probably confusing. Meg, on the other hand, decided to be blunt.

"I see dead people." Meg simply said.

"What?!" Jounouchi and Honda screamed.

"Sh!" I hissed.

They did quiet down but their faces were still wide in shock. "Do you two know when to keep quiet?!"

"Dead people?" Ryuji asked gently. "You mean like… ghosts?"

Meg nodded her head. She was super calm about it.

"Yep. Ever since I was a kid."

The gang's faces were still wide in shock and amazement. "People say it's a curse. A past life of mine did something terrible and when they died, it was passed on to me."

"That's terrible." Yugi breathed.

Meg simply shrugged. She was probably so used to it by now. I was upset that I didn't have the talisman that allowed me to see the way she did with me; I had left it at home the day I arrived in this world since Meg wasn't going to be at school that day. Meg must have known my train of thought as she playfully hit my hip again.

"Don't worry about it, 'stine."

I gave a nod of my head, making my friend smile at me. She ended up changing the subject and the mood became much brighter then.

Meg's house was a townhouse about 15 minutes away from the bus station. It didn't stand out from the rest of the houses but it looked like no one even noticed as we approached and entered the house. Not even a passing dog looked up at our feet. That was really weird. The interior was arranged much like her house back at home, the main living area just across from the kitchen. Meg's guitar was placed in its hold against the wall, just like it always was. She took our bags and pulled them down a side hall. My stomach growled lightly so I walked into the kitchen.

"Meggie!" I called. "I'm jacking your kitchen!"

"Go for it!"

The gang laughed at how little she cared about me messing with her stuff. I happily skipped into the kitchen and fiddled through her drawers and cupboards. I couldn't hear what the gang were saying outside the kitchen but the sound of Meg's guitar filtered through the small window into the living area. I was surprised that it actually followed her here. The beginning chords of a familiar song hit my ears and I smiled. I was happy to remember the words, singing them under my breath.

_Once we were  
In our peace  
With our lives assured._

_Once we were  
Not afraid of the dark._

_Once we sat in our kingdom  
With hope and pride._

_Once we ran through  
The fields with great strides._

_We held the Fade  
And the demon's flight  
So far from our children  
And from our lives._

_We held together  
The fragile sky  
To keep our way of life._

_Once we raised  
Up our chalice  
In victory._

_Once we sat  
In the light of our dreams._

_Once we were  
In our homeland  
With strength and might._

_Once we were  
Not afraid of the night._

_We held the Fade  
And the demon's flight  
So far from our children  
And from our lives._

_We held together  
The fragile sky  
To keep our way of life_

I giggled when song ended. The hilarity faded when I heard Meg shout. "Heard that, 'stine!" I huffed loudly and I heard Meg burst into laughter again.

"Jerk!"

Meg laughed again and I heard the rest of the gang join in. I rolled my eyes as I picked up the small plate of snacks that I gathered. I walked out of the kitchen to see Meg and the gang settled on the couches. Meg was fiddling with her guitar, plucking the strings mindlessly.

"I didn't know you sang, Christine?" Honda joked.

"I don't. Meg just likes to think I can."

Meg stuck her tongue out at me and I wrinkled my nose at her in retort. My friend put her guitar back into its hold and gave a smile.

"So!" She chirped. "Did I miss anything?"

We regaled Meg with everything that happened from the beginning all the way to now. Meg would glance at me at different moments when it came to Yami and myself. I gave her a look that said I would explain later and she nodded her head. As soon as the stories ended, Meg gave a hum and leaned back in her chair. "Wow… That's a lot in the span of a year."

"You're telling me." Yugi joked.

Meg laughed at the jab, slapping her knee in hilarity. "So… since you and Christine know each other, is there anything you can tell us about her?" I snapped my head towards Yugi.

"Yugi!" I hissed.

It was too late though. A Cheshire cat smile streaked across Meg's face. "Meg…. Don't you dare…" The threat wasn't considered as Meg gave a sinister chuckle.

"Ya guys want to see 'stine being super salty?"

The gang agreed immediately. Meg ran to get her laptop and pulled up fun videos of us. I rolled my eyes at the clips she picked ranging from us playing Super Smash bros to my original gang playing Dead by Daylight. I laughed hysterically when the clip of me chasing Meg as the Nurse showed up with her screaming obscenities at me when I finally knocked her down. "I'm still mad at you for that." I gave a cheeky smile.

I also used the moment to quietly explain most of what was going on on my end. Meg got another Cheshire cat smile when I admitted Yami and I were together. I didn't tell her about being Iliana as that would have been extremely difficult to explain without the help of the Millennium Necklace.

"Oh, how are my parents?" I breathed. "Are they ok?"

Meg's smile faded immediately. My excitement dropped. Meg waved me into another room while the gang kept watching the clips. Meg gave a heaving sigh once we were sure there wasn't anyone in ear shot.

"Your parents… don't remember you."

Everything went cold.

"What?"

"The day you vanished; I wasn't at school but this phone number called me as soon as classes ended. The ID said Carrie or something? I had no idea who it was so I didn't answer."

I think I knew where this was going… "_Carrie_ kept calling until I answered. She was super pissed. 'How could I be ignoring my best friend?'" A shuddering breath left my lungs. "_She _was their daughter. She definitely looked like your dad and didn't inherit any powers. She had no idea that the circle even existed. Your mom barely even let me into the house! Said I was a bad influence on her trying to live a normal life. All the pictures were the same but instead of you, it was her!" Meg gave a huff. "She was definitely your mom's kid though, bossy and all that."

"What about dad?"

"Carrie wasn't much of a Lord of the Ring's fan and you know your Dad's opinion on that."

"He loves it. He would have gone berserk…"

"Exactly!"

Another shuddering breath left my lungs.

"What else?"

"All our videos. The ones on my laptop are still good but the ones online are completely changed! She has utterly replaced you! Not even Austin and Senpai remembered you!"

It was like I was utterly erased. The only one who remembered me was Meg… I gasped a sob. I spent so long wanting to see them again and this was what I was given. It was just my luck. Meg quickly wrapped me up into a tight hug. I tried to be quiet so as to not get the attention of the gang.

We stayed like that for a little while so that I could calm down. When Anzu knocked at the door, asking if we were ok. I didn't respond so Meg did for me, saying that we would be out in a minute. The two of us eventually left the room. Nobody mentioned my tear stained face and I was happy to keep it quiet. I would end up going to rest in the room Meg put my bag, ironically her room, so that I could be numb without anyone questioning me.

Meg:

The moment 'stine walked into Meg's room, she knew something was wrong. Meg stared at the closed door for a second, eyes narrowed. Yugi's voice caught her attention so Meg was forced to look away.

"So, what's up with the ghosts?" Yugi asked.

Meg gave a gentle shrug.

"I see them and as soon as they know I see them, they like to…." Meg had to think of the word. "hang out around me."

"That has to be annoying." Ryuji deadpanned.

"You have no idea. It's a pain!"

"Can they touch you?" Anzu asked hesitantly.

"Nah, they go right through me. I've had them try to rough me up but…"

Meg made a sound effect like a 'whoosh'. "You learn to deal." Meg saw Yugi's expression. She figured he could tell it still bothered her sometimes and it was true. It was unnerving to say the least. Being shouted at by someone she didn't know and by someone no one else could see.

"What's up with the ribbon?" Jounouchi then asked, pointing to his neck.

Meg flinched. She fought past the painful memories of that day. She put on a fake bright smile as she gave her usual excuse.

"Fashion!"

"With that flinch?" Honda asked, eyebrow raised. "We're not dumb."

"Honda!" Anzu snapped.

The girl turned to Meg then. "Sorry about him, Meg. You don't have to talk about it." Meg gave a sigh. If she knew Jounouchi and Honda well enough, they wouldn't give up questioning the blue ribbon wrapped around her throat. She shook her head, brushing off Anzu's apology.

"No. It's fine."

Meg reached behind her neck and pulled the ribbon loose. It came apart with a light click and Meg revealed a large scar across the front of her neck. Anzu gave a gasp and all the boy's eyes all widened. "Don't tell 'stine I told you this, ok?" She got her answer from the silence. "Being cursed means a lot more that simply seeing something that isn't meant to be there. You're isolated from the circle and in my case, my own family. As soon as my mother found out, she kept me away from my siblings like I had a disease that would spread. My dad… he was a bit more violent." Meg saw Jounouchi's eyes narrow at that. "When 'stine and I were 12, my dad lost it. We had come home from a school trip and were talking about something I had seen in the water of the nearby lake. My dad grabbed me and…" Meg's voice cut off there, her hand slid up to her throat. The slide of the knife was still imbedded in her memories. "I don't remember much after that. I woke up in the hospital with severe blood loss and a battle scar."

No one said anything. Meg took the moment of silence to return her ribbon to her neck. "I'm lucky I wasn't injured more but the real injury hit 'stine. She was traumatized for months after. She was the one to call 911 and get me help when my mother and siblings did nothing. I… I have her to thank for saving my voice and my life."

"That's horrible!" Ryuji growled.

Meg gave a shrug.

"It's the life of someone who's cursed."

Meg quickly changed the subject. "You all should head to bed. It's late." Nobody argued with her. Though before Yugi could walk out of the room, Meg quickly spoke again. "Yugi? Can I have a quick word?" Yugi changed course and walked back to Meg. "Could I talk to the Pharaoh super quick? It's about 'stine."

"Oh, yeah!" Yugi chirped. "Gimme a sec."

The change was near instant and Meg was face to face with the 3000 year old Pharaoh. He blinked curiously at her with crimson eyes.

"Can Yugi hear me?"

"No." The Pharaoh shook his head. "Is something wrong?"

Meg gave a sigh. She played with her fingers for a second before she spoke.

"You know about 'stine and I, right? How we're not from… here."

The Pharaoh nodded. "I mentioned something about her parents and it made her really upset. She's not mad at me but she's mad, I guess. I was wondering if you, as her utterly amazing and super talented boyfriend, could help cheer her up?"

"What could I do though?"

"You're the boyfriend, you can do anything!"

The Pharaoh gave her a raised eyebrow but Meg only continued to smile. "At least talk to her?"

"All right."

Meg smiled at the Pharaoh, silently thanking him for being so understanding.

Christine:

My need for food was the thing to bring me out of Meg's room finally. My friend was taking a shower so I was able to sneak out of the room without making too much noise. The rest of the gang probably went to bed as well and I was thankful that they weren't going to question my still red face.

Yami sitting on the couch greeted me as I walked back into the living room. He snuck up on me?

"Hey…" He breathed gently.

"Hey…" I breathed back, nervously trying to wipe away more of the tear stains on my cheek.

We stared at each other for a second. Yami moved first when he lifted a hand out to me. I walked over to take it and he pulled me to sit next to him. The spirit adjusted us so that he could sit comfortably but still turn to talk to me. The hand not holding mine moved up to my cheek to wipe at the red streaks on my cheeks.

"Are you ok? Meg said that you were upset."

She told him? I gave a sigh. Of course Meg would get Yami involved.

"I'm fine. Don't worry about it."

"Mereret…"

I looked up at the Pharaoh, seeing his crimson eyes slightly narrowed. "I could see that this bothered you even before Meg said anything. All I want to know is if you're ok." Tears teamed at my eyes again and I had to hold back a sob. Yami wrapped me up in his arms quickly so that when I did finally break down, I could cry into his chest. "It's ok… It's ok…"

I pulled away after a while, wiping away the remaining tears. Yami kept his free arm around my waist, keeping himself and me close. "Can I know what's going on?"

"My parents… the people who raised me… they don't remember me…"

I practically heard Yami's confusion. He tilted his head, leaning it gently on the couch behind us. "I was replaced the day I left that world and arrived in Domino. My mom and dad now have a perfectly normal daughter and have no memory of me." Yami wiped away a tear that streaked down my cheek at the words. "It's almost my luck. I wanted to see them again and this…" I gave another sigh. "It's very disheartening." Yami hummed gently. His thumb was now rubbing gently into the skin of my cheek.

"I'm sorry to hear that. But there is something good…"

I looked up at him again. What could be good about this? "They may not remember you but you remember them. Your memory of them keeps that part of them alive."

"Even if they've changed entirely?"

"Even so. The people they were will live on in your memory where they be eternal."

That way of thinking was actually helpful. I finally gave a smile.

"Thank you."

Yami smiled. His grip around my waist tightened slightly and I happily allowed myself to cuddle into my boyfriend. I then decided to be a smartass. "I guess you're finally getting the hang of the religion again." Yami rolled his eyes at my tease, making me laugh. It was cut off when my boyfriend pressed a gentle kiss to my lips. I was quick to press one in return and it brought a smile to Yami's face now. I wrapped him in a quick hug before I spoke again. "You and Yugi should head to bed. It's late." Yami hummed again before kissing me again. I had to pull him to his feet so that he would get moving. He gave me one last kiss before he walked back to where he and Yugi were resting for the night. My happy thoughts were interrupted when Meg walked out of the bathroom.

"Damn…" She deadpanned. "And I thought I was thirsty."

"Meg!"

My best friend cackled as she entered the room I was sharing with her. I glowered at her before stomping inside, my good mood dropping immediately.

"So…." Meg drawled as she laid on her back on the bed. "About you and the Pharaoh…"

"Yeah….? What about it?"

"You do know what will happen eventually, right?"

I finished pulling my sleep shirt over my head and allowed the thoughts to circulate in my head. I remembered the general idea of what was to come. The more I was here, the less I remembered. "'Stine, I don't want you to get hurt."

"I'm not, Meggie."

"What if he's got a wife?! 'stine! How are you gonna compete with someone's he's been married to for 3000 years?!"

The question actually made me smile. Meg glowered at it. "What exactly is there to be smiling about? Is there something I should know?"

"Oh yeah…"

Meg raised her eyebrow as I walked over to the charm Marik gave me at the end of Battle City. I tossed it over to my friend, who had to sit up and catch it in both hands. She looked it over for a second before looking back up to me. "I got that from Marik Ishtar whose Ghouls dug it up from rubble underneath an 18th dynasty palace structure in what was ancient Ipt-sut or Thebes."

"The capital of the New Kingdom?"

"Exactly."

"And? What does that have to do with anything?"

I reached back into my bag to lift up the Millennium Necklace. Yugi let me carry it for this trip because it brought me a bit closer to my past. Meg stared at it for a second before flicking her eyes back to me. "You're not getting zapped by it."

"It's never zapped me. It's tingled but never zapped."

Meg gave a hum as she looked over to the Millennium Necklace again. "It's also showed me visions. Wanna see if it will give us one?" Meg sat up fully and played with her chin.

"Will Shadi come after us for disturbing the mystical alignment?"

"I highly doubt it."

"Let's do it then!"

I laughed at Meg's enthusiasm as I stepped over to sit next to her. I held one side of the necklace while holding out the other side to my friend. Meg was only slightly hesitant but eventually took hold of the necklace.

We only waited a second before the eye began to glow bright white and we were transported away.

**I hope you all enjoyed the chapter!**

**Bakura: I'm amazed you've looked away from your Fire Emblem game long enough to do all this...**

**Robyn glares at Bakura before lifting her hands to be antlers on her head. **

**Fear... The... Deer...**

**Bakura: Black Eagle Strike Force!**

**GET OUT!**


	2. The Whispers of an Imposter

**Hi guys! Chapter 2 time! I'm very excited with this beginning section as I've been planning this for a very long time! Be prepared for a familiar face to reappear in this chapter! **

***I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! I only own my OCs Christine and Meg. If you recognize anything, I don't own it either.***

I opened my eyes to be returned to an Egyptian style palace. The clerestory windows were letting in brilliant light, illuminating the images on the wall. Meg and I were still clutching onto the Millennium Necklace so I figured it worked. I looked over to my best friend to see that her eyes were wide at the surroundings.

"Maker's Breath…" Meg cursed in her way. "This is insane!"

"You're telling me?" I giggled back.

Meg continued to look around her surroundings before voices began to echo from a nearby room. I gestured for us to follow them and Meg did so quietly.

We walked into what seemed to be a greeting room. Servants were milling around, placing food items and two cups on a small table before racing out of the room. Preparing for guests possibly? Meg and I kept quiet as the room cleared and new voices started to walk into the room.

"What do you mean?!" A slightly familiar voice whined.

"I can't do that, Megara." My voice appeared, cajoling the other girl. "I don't have that much influence over the court."

"But you will eventually!"

I heard a sigh and the two girls walked into the room. I immediately recognized myself in my white linen dress and large scarab chest piece. I was giving another girl an annoyed expression as she clung to my arm. The stranger wore a green dress that slightly clung to her frame. Her hair was the same color as Meg's but much longer and tied back into a long braid. She wore a bright smile as she looked up from where she was clinging to my arm.

The face on the stranger's… was Meg's.

"What…?" Meg gasped when the girl walked into the room. "'Stine, what is the meaning of this?"

"I don't know." I replied. "I've never seen this memory before…"

Meg continued to stare at her look alike as they continued into the room and sat down where the servants had placed the food and drinks. My past self picked up a drink and sipped at it gently while Meg's double, Megara, picked up small set of grapes to nibble on.

"Megara…" My past self sighed when the said girl turned on her again. "As I said, I don't have the influence to do all that."

"But you'll get that influence in less than a week." Megara retorted.

"Still…"

Megara gave a huff, popping one of her grapes into her mouth. Meg continued to stare at her. Her voice was hesitant when she finally spoke.

"'Stine…" Meg breathed. "Why does that girl have your face?"

Here's the moment of truth…

"She has my face because she is me." I replied.

Meg turned to give me the expression we equated to 'quit it with the bullshit.' "I'm not lying, Meggie. You heard my voice come out of her mouth."

"But…"

Meg turned back to look at her doppelganger. "How is it even possible? This is… if this is really what I think it is… It's 3000 years ago!"

"I know… I didn't believe it either but the Stele, Meggie! It's the absolute same!"

Meg glanced back at me. "And if you're here… She might be you! This girl may be the origin of your curse! Megara's fate could be the key to finally understanding why!"

Meg didn't have a chance to respond as someone else walked into the room. Megara gave a smile at the person walking in.

"Father!" Megara greeted, jumping to her feet.

"Ah, here you are, Megara." The man gave a soft sigh in relief. "I was worried when I couldn't find you."

"I'm sorry, Father."

Megara's father gave another sigh. He had short brown hair and had grown a beard. He was wearing clothes that looked like remnants I had seen in Mycenean Greek images. The thing that caught my attention the most was the scar on his left cheek. It was the same kind of scar that my father had… The man looked up and caught eyes with my past self and his dark eyes widened. "Oh, this is Iliana!" Megara's face snapped over to my past self. "I can call you that, right?"

"In private, yes." My past self replied with a smile. "In public, you have to go with the other one."

Megara gave a smile but it faded when she turned back to her father. The man continued to stare at my past self and that gave the opportunity for Meg to snap at me.

"Iliana?!" She gasped.

I gave a nod of my head. "Andraste's tits! What?!" I didn't have time to explain further as the man was finally getting words out.

"Wait… Iliana?" He gasped out.

"Yes…" My past self tilted her head curiously. "Is everything all right?"

"Your mother… Your mother was Phoebe?"

"Yes… Why?"

The man immediately fell into tears. Megara raced to her father's side to help stabilize him. My past self climbed to her feet to try and help but he raised his hand. It took a minute for him to settle but the man was eventually able to stand up on his own. "How do you know my mother's name?" The man gave a watery laugh.

"That requires an introduction."

Megara's father took a deep breath before speaking again. "I am Atreus, son of Demetrios. Your mother and I lived in the same town until the day I helped her and your father elope."

I nearly dropped the Millennium Necklace at the words. He knew my parents?! My past self shared the same expression I did. Meg continued to flip her gaze between the man, Atreus, and myself. "Your mother wrote me letters, telling me about how you were growing." He gave a laugh. "To think she was right yet again."

"Right, father?" Megara asked.

Atreus slid a hand into his robes and pulled out a piece of velum and held it out to my past self.

"This was one of the last letters I received from your mother."

I walked over, opened it, but looked up quickly.

"I… I can't read this…" My past self breathed sadly. "I never learned."

"I'll read it! Sit!" Megara broke in when Iliana looked close to tears.

Megara directed both Iliana and her father to sit down at the small set of chairs and tables. She took the velum and began to read.

**_Atreus,_**

**_I hope this letter finds you well. Adrastus and I have settled into a safe village at last. I won't give you the location just in case my father hears wind of you receiving letters from me. But please give my regards to my younger brother; I miss Hector more than I can say. _**

**_Months of travel through the mountains have done me no good. Adrastus makes himself useful amongst the guards and to the elected leader, who has no sons of his own. He has practically adopted him as his heir. No one questions us, probably because I helped save his wife from disease. _**

**_I write you this letter because it will probably be one of the last. Not even a month after we settled into the village, I gave birth to my daughter. A vision the day before gave me her name, Iliana. Before you question it, it is a name that exists far ahead of our own time but it means ray of light and my little girl is the very light of my life. But… not too long after she was born, I had another vision. Adrastus and I will not be long for this world after she reaches her sixth birthday. I write this letter to ask that you keep her safe when that time comes. She will be taken and I will not be able to protect her. I cannot say where you will find her but the sun shall be your guide, my friend. _**

**_May the gods guide you, Atreus,_**

**_Phoebe._**

My past self was fighting back tears. Megara settled the velum onto the couch before wrapping me in a tight hug. Meg and I kept quiet, allowing the sounds of Iliana's tears echo in the room.

"I did not mean to make you upset, Iliana…" Megara's father breathed sadly.

My past self shook her head, stopping him from going any further.

"It is not your fault." I comforted him. "It has simply been a long time since I have seen anything about my parents. It overwhelmed me."

Atreus gave an understanding hum. My past self took the velum note from Megara and looked it over. I could see her sliding her fingertips over the letters. Meg used the moment of silence to turn back to me.

"Ok…" Meg breathed to me. "This has to be the craziest thing I have ever seen."

"Do you believe me?"

Meg took a moment of silence to think it over. Her eyes had gone back to Megara for a second before looking to my past self.

"You wouldn't lie about something like this. But that still doesn't address my concern about him having a wife."

The conversation started again before I could address the concern.

"How did you get that scar, sir?" My past self asked, lowering the velum letter.

"Oh, this?" He lifted a hand to the scar on his face. "Your father gave me this."

"Why?"

"You remember your father had a similar scar?"

My past self nodded. "Well, I gave him it." Meg and I moved to sit down so that we could be comfortable to listen. "You see, your mother was not the typical woman. She absolutely hated the traditional roles that women were forced to adhere to. I'm going to say her visions of the future melded her that way; she could see a time and place where women weren't property of fathers, brothers or husbands. She wanted to live that life now, not only see it through her visions. And I, being a son of a powerful politician and her friend, helped her get out of a lot of trouble. I also helped uncover… what her father had planned for her future."

"What was it?"

Atreus took a soft breath. If he was thinking about how to reply, I wasn't sure if I really did want to know.

"Your grandfather wasn't very happy that she inherited her family's gift. He was going to ensure she had an heir but not live much longer than that."

"He was going to kill her?!"

Atreus nodded. Meg and I glanced at each other at that. This was getting really weird. "Then how did mother escape?"

"She used the thing that got in her trouble in the first place. She fabricated a vision of a tournament; the winner of said tournament would receive her hand in marriage."

"That does sound like something Mother would do…"

"Our only problem was her father paying off some of the competitors to keep his plan in motion. He couldn't get one though…"

"Father."

"Adrastus and I were the final round of the tournament. I knew she wanted him to win and I only joined to ensure that she got the one she wanted. But when I tried to lose, he responded in kind."

"What?!" I was actually the one to open my mouth this time. "Why?!"

Meg shushed me as Atreus kept going.

"I may have promised him a fair fight. He was very unhappy with me when I started trying to lose. When your mother shouted at us from above, I panicked, flicked my spear and hit your father across the face."

Megara and my past self gasped. "That was Phoebe's reaction. But your father stood there for a moment and I will never forget the words that came out of his mouth then."

"What were they, father?" Megara asked.

"'Ok… I think that's good enough.'" Atreus gave a chuckle then. "He then proceeded to wipe the floor with me. It took a single swipe of his spear and I was on the ground but he looked at me for a moment. He lifted a hand to his wounded cheek, looked back at me, then swiped his spear across my face. 'There, now we match.'"

Both my past self and Megara burst into laughter. "Your father had quite the sense of humor."

"What seems to be going on here?" Another familiar voice asked.

Everyone, including Meg and myself looked up to see the princely version of Yami walk into the room. He looked exactly the same as the vision with Ishizu before Battle City. "Ah, Mereret. You're here." My past self smiled.

"I thought you were busy with your father for another few hours?" My past self asked.

"He let me go so I came to look for you. I see you've met our guests."

I nodded my head. I gestured to Megara then to her father.

"This is Megara and her father, Atreus. He… He knew my parents."

Yami looked up to the man, who bowed his head gently.

"Did he…"

Yami's hand moved to my past self's shoulder and I could see myself relax into the touch. I glanced over to Meg to see that she was staring intently at the scene.

"I must thank you, your highness." Atreus bowed his head again. "I heard that you made a funerary monument to them."

"That was a long time ago."

"But still. It means a lot to me that you would do that. I am sure that wherever they are, Phoebe and Adrastus are at peace."

Yami didn't reply, keeping to moving his hand along my skin. "Phoebe would also be happy that Iliana is happy in her new home."

"You will not try to take her back?"

Atreus shook his head.

"Her home is here and I will not fight that. All I ask is that you make your future wife happy, your highness."

I felt Meg flinch and faintly saw her turning her head towards me. I gave a smile as she continued to stare at me.

The vision faded before I could hear Yami's response but I knew Meg's concerns were all answered for. I finally turned back to Meg, smile still on my face.

"Any more questions?" I teasingly asked.

Meg blinked.

"Apparently not!" She gasped back. "That last statement answered everything!"

I burst into laughter at her wide eyed expression. "Damn, 'stine! You got yourself a looker! Twice!" I kept to laughing for a while when Meg continued to gasp curses. When she was finally calm, she suggested that she needed to sleep on this.

I awoke the next morning to a Meg-less room. I sat up to try and see if she was sitting on the floor with her laptop like she does sometimes. She wasn't there so… maybe she was in the kitchen? I was utterly sweaty, more so than usual after sleeping. With a disgusted groan, I climbed out of bed and went to take a shower.

Meg was in the kitchen and she smiled at me when I walked into the small kitchen. "Morning!"

"Morning."

"You ok?"

I tilted my head. What? Meg blinked at me. "'Stine, you had, like, three nightmares last night, do you not remember?"

"I did?!"

"Yeah! You were so loud, you woke the Pharaoh up!"

I made a loud groan. "By the third one, he was half ready to simply stay in the room with us."

"Oh my god…"

Really?! This was so embarrassing! I didn't remember at all! Meg turned away from whatever she was making on the stove to cross her arms.

"If you don't remember, then it really was traumatic. Dang."

"Sorry to bother, Meggie."

"Nah!"

Meg wrapped me in a tight hug. "It's fine! Whatever it was, it had to have scared you worse than I did." I gave a sigh into my friend's shoulder. I didn't like remembering that day at all. My friend released me once I relaxed. "Wanna help with breakfast?"

Meg turned on the tunes and we rocked out for the few minutes as breakfast was being made. It was super crazy because most of the songs in the playlist now were ones that came out after I arrived in Domino. I faintly saw the rest of the gang lured out by the music and laughter and they were definitely laughing at our terrible lip-syncing.

After breakfast, the gang went to take an after-meal siesta. I would have joined them except that Meg asked for help running a couple errands. I was happy to help out, especially since I took a lot of her food in my snack binges. I told Yugi where I was going before walking out the door with Meg.

We barely made it halfway down the street before Meg gave a wild shudder.

"One following you?"

"Yeah… It's been a butt for the past few days. Its mutterings are annoying."

I pulled Meg along, hoping our faster pace would ensure the ghost left Meg alone. We charged along for a minute or two before Meg pulled back, the sign that it worked. I slowed down my pace and we began to walk calmly again.

Most of Meg's errands were near the town square so we headed there. She was sure to quietly point out the entrance to this area's circle. "I've been able to get in a couple times thanks to some help, it's a nice place."

"That's good to hear."

It really was. Meg normally wasn't allowed into the circle at home so someone getting her in warmed my heart.

There were a couple people congregating at the entrance to the building where the circle met. There was something about them that seemed a bit off despite their preppy Californian clothing. Their expressions when they saw me sent shivers down my spine. "Who are they?" I asked gently. Meg glanced over to where they were sitting and rolled her eyes.

"They're the ones that buddy up with the crone in order to get away with stuff. One of them nearly killed a mortal and the crone helped get them out of trouble, making sure it was like nothing had ever happened."

I narrowed my eyes towards the congregation of people. Why did it feel like Meg and I were the only ones that were taught to never hurt mortals? One girl narrowed her eyes in return, crossing her legs so that she could turn and face me as Meg and I continued to walk. "It's probably best to not to mess with them while you're here. This crone is a bit off her rocker, if I say so myself. I'd hate to cause you and the gang any trouble." I turned my eyes away from the girl to smile at Meg.

"Duly noted, Meggie. Will keep my hands to myself."

Meg raised her eyebrow at the statement.

"Whenever you've said that, it's always ended up the opposite."

"Shut up."

Meg burst into laughter and we kept on our way. We hopped into a store to grab a few bags of snacks that would last us the rest of the weekend, bought some pain killers and cold medicine for our trip to Kaiba's tournament. I offered to pay Meg back for the amenities but my friend shook me off.

Our last stop was a little shop that stuck out like a sore thumb but nobody seemed to be paying it any mind. I recognized it as a supply store like the one Kokona worked at in Domino. Meg may not have been allowed her powers but she still was able to go in and buy incenses and other potion ingredients; if they didn't require magic to activate, Meg was in luck in using them. The girl at the register gave a kind wave as Meg and I walked in.

"Hey, Meghan." The girl greeted.

"Hey, Clove." Meg greeted in return. "Slow day?"

"As usual. Who's your friend?"

"This is 'stine. She's visiting from Japan with her friends on their way to some tournament at that newly opened park."

I made sure to give a wave with a soft smile. The girl Clove gave one in return. "Did my order come in?"

"Yeah, just this morning. It's on the table for ya!"

Meg gave a bright squeal as she dashed over to the mentioned table. "Let me know if you need anything, kay?"

"Right." I replied, giving her another smile.

While Meg looked over whatever she ordered, I meandered along the walls to see their stock. It was nearly the same as the one in Domino despite the arrangement being different. I picked up a premade potion, looking over its effects, when a harsh whisper hit my ear.

_"For the Crone and Queen…"_

I snapped my head around. There was no one standing near me; the closest was an older woman on the other side of the cabinet. She was buried nose deep into a book so I figured it wasn't her. I quickly put the potion back on the shelf and stepped quickly to Meg. "Did you hear that, Meggie?" My friend looked up from her order to give me a confused look.

"Hear what?"

I gave a huff at her. "Really, 'stine, I didn't hear anything. What was it?"

"'For the Crone and Queen…'?"

Meg crossed her arms over her chest, popping her hip to lean on it. "Can we go, Meggie?"

"Let me pay for this and then we can head back."

I nodded my head, following after my friend to the counter. Clove gave me a concerned expression when I stepped up.

"You ok?" She asked gently. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

Meg flinched lightly but she kept the smile on her face; Clove must not have known Meg's curse. I forced myself to give a smile in return.

"Yeah…" I replied hastily. "Just a little spooked."

"This place will do it to ya. The owner tells me that it's been possibly haunted since the Gold Rush. You've may have been one of the lucky ones to hear the spirits."

"Congrats, 'stine." Meg teased softly, but I could hear the soft contempt at Clove's words.

I forced myself to keep the smile on my face, nodding gently to her words. I highly doubted that was the case; I had heard real spirit voices when I hung out with Meg and had the talisman and this voice was nothing like that.

"Oh, yeah! Did you guys hear?"

"Hear what?"

"The queen has returned!"

Meg and I immediately gave a glance at each other. Meg had only known since last night and we were sure the gang didn't leave the house and blabber, they would know better. How on earth did they know… if at all…

"I haven't heard about that…" I breathed.

"It's being kept under wraps so I'm only hearing the rumors coming out of the crone's circle. They apparently did the reveal to the crone, lady and maiden a few weeks ago. I hope she reveals herself to the public soon!"

"Yeah…" Meg gave me another glance before giving Clove a smile. "I hope so too…"

I was grateful to get out of the shop quickly. "Hey 'stine… what the heck was that?"

"I have no idea…" I replied, crossing my arms over my chest. "A reveal weeks ago… I was in Domino then… This makes no sense…"

"I agree with you there. The vision you showed me last night was pretty compelling evidence that you are her…"

"A reveal requires substantial proof. What else could there be to prove… **_my_** identity?"

Meg's silence was answer enough. There wasn't much that I didn't already have that someone else could take to prove that they are me.

"Are you thinking the crone's been tricked? It's some kind of imposter with enough influence over her?"

"Maybe…"

I didn't like thinking of that. The crone I had grown up under, although strict, fought to keep our circle a tight-knit community. She went through every avenue to make sure that we were safe before undergoing any change. If this crone has been so easily tricked into believing someone else was the queen of the circle… Things were going to get bad really fast.

I should have kept my mental mouth shut.

As soon as I thought those last few sentences, hands grabbed me from the nearby alley. I gave a soft scream, hearing it muffled by the hand that wrapped around my mouth, and was dragged into the alley.

"'Stine!"

Meg tried to reach for me but I was pulled into a dark void and my friend left my sight.

I was thrown to the floor, laughter ringing above me.

"Well well!" One voice cheered. "The Imposter of our great Queen!"

What….? "Don't fret! The crone will see your proof in time!"

"Your mind won't be the same though!" Another voice laughed.

"It might even be a puddle on the ground!"

Laughter erupted again as the group left the room, the door slamming behind them. I caught my breath to look up and glare at the door. So much for circle hospitality… I gave a quick huff before climbing to my feet. Where the heck was I?

I was in a dark room lit by a single LED light. It was too bright to stare at so I made sure to keep away from it. The only object in the room was a large altar like table. It was bare so I immediately thought of those old movies that were filled with human sacrifices. Yikes…

I turned to the door then and tried to yank it open. It wouldn't even budge. I could hear laughter on the other side and I gave a glare through the metal door. They kept a guard at a door that was locked like they knew I would try to escape. I gave a huff and stomped back into the room and sat on the altar table.

I sat in the dark room for only a little while before someone approached and easily opened the door. Preparing a spell, I readied to defend myself. When I recognized who was there, the spell faded.

"You!" I hissed at the familiar face of Daisuke.

I hadn't seen him since the trip to the beach over a year ago. He hadn't changed much: short brown hair and brown eyes. He was wearing applicable clothes for the California heat. In his hands was a tray with a singular cup.

I immediately went to punch him.

"Hey!" He shouted back, ducking from my fist. "This wasn't my idea!"

I went to hit him again but Daisuke finagled out of reach. I gave a growl.

"Why are you here?!"

"Transfer program!"

Transfer program? "It was an exchange! Someone from this circle went to mine while I came here! I'm not following you around!" I lowered my fist but kept my glare. "I'd like to not be on the end of your powers again. I learned my lesson last time."

"Somehow I don't believe you."

"Wasn't expecting that you would."

I was surprised that Daisuke kept a wide berth from me. He kept his eyes on the tray in his hands. My eyes moved to the cup on it. I couldn't see what was inside but the smell… I nearly gagged.

"What's that?" I asked, curiosity getting the better of me.

"Something the crone ordered me to force you to drink."

I narrowed my eyes again. The crone? "She's a master of tearing minds apart. This is just her way in."

What was up with this crone? Even Meg had said that she was off her rocker slightly. Then what Clove said about the queen…

"So the whisper in town… Of the queen returning."

"I don't know what you heard but some people here, they're convinced."

I gave a harsh sigh. This was just peachy. "Though…. This morning a new rumor started. Is it really true? About you?" I looked back up to him. "Are you…. Are you really her?" My hand moved to the charm around my neck. The gold was cold to the touch. I gave a faint nod of my head. "Good god… And I was stupid enough to get you angry." That made me laugh.

"I had no strength back then."

"Still… You bruised a couple ribs with that freezer."

I gave a nervous chuckle at the damage I had done to him in our duel.

"Sorry about that."

Daisuke gave a shrug. "Do they really think that this person is her?"

"Not everybody. A lot of us aren't convinced in the slightest; details don't match up. The 'reveal', if you can call it that, was done behind closed doors. Nobody knew, outside of the main leadership and those annoying tweens who hang onto the crone, what was going on."

I gave a sigh. "Only the lady and crone are the big believers. I apparently don't see what they do; I find her a complete bitch."

"What about the maiden?"

"She's been practically alienated for questioning it. Rumor has it, the crone was going to give her this next after she's done with you."

I took a deep breath. Ok… So someone really was trying to impersonate me. My attention was brought back to Daisuke when he put the tray down on the small altar like piece and spoke again. "But you're really her! You might be able to rally the rest of this circle to go against the crone!"

"No." I shook my head hard. "I have no hard evidence. A show of my powers only gets me so far."

"Yeah, but your charm!"

I reached up to it again. "People will see that! They might realize that they are being lied to!" I shook my head again.

"If the crone is smart, she'll have a talking point against anything. Call me a liar for even suggesting the thought."

I gave a soft sigh. "She also has those teens; she can remove all dissent rather easily with a simple gossip session." Daisuke gave a sigh when he realized that he wasn't going to get anywhere. There was no way I was going to be able to get out of this room and out of the circle without being caught. Even with Daisuke's abilities helping me, someone was bound to see me; I still had to get out of the city. I had no choice but to follow along with what the crone had planned. "Is there any way for my friends to get in? What about Meg?"

"Peters?" He knew Meg? "She's had a hard time getting in – the lady is super conservative about those with curses – but I've snuck in her a couple times."

He knew Meg… He was the one to get her in…

I snapped my head towards Daisuke before I grabbed his arm, wrapping my hand around his elbow. He flinched but didn't pull away as he quickly he recognized what I was doing.

"I want you to promise me something."

Daisuke nodded immediately. "I want you to get my friends inside. You do that and I forgive you for what you did that day." Daisuke nodded again, returning the grip on my own arm. I felt the spell lock and I released his arm. "Good…"

I turned towards the tray and lifted up the cup. Inside was a bubbling black liquid potion. Being this close, the smell was absolutely rancid. I took a deep breath. I had faith in everybody. They'd come to get me. "Bottom's up." I 'cheerfully' said before taking the black potion like a shot.

The sludge hit my throat making me nearly gag. I had to swallow it and happily gave a cough as it slid down my throat. Daisuke tried to help me but I pushed him away. "Remember your promise…." I managed to say. I could see faintly Daisuke nod his head and race out of the room. I gave another cough before collapsing onto the table.

Please… get my friends here in time….

Everything went black.

**Oooooh... I'm so excited!**

**Bakura: Have you finally looked up from that silly game?**

**Robyn glares at Bakura and goes to lift her hands again. **

**Bakura: Don't you dare! **

**Robyn: Try me!**

**Marik: Fear the Deer!**


	3. The Botched Mental Defenses

**This one is a long one! It was originally longer but I cut it into two chapters and gave you all a cliff hanger; apologies now! This chapter is exciting for me because this was the chapter that began this exciting journey with Meg. Lots of references, lots of nerdness, lots of insanity. I hope you enjoy it!**

***I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! I only own Christine, Meg and Daisuke, my OCs. If you recognize something, I don't own that either. References include 2016 era Dead by Daylight, a Dungeons and Dragons text post, Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit, RWBY, Dragon Age and more.***

Meg had been utterly panicked when she returned to the gang alone. Yugi could feel his other-self stiffen because of Christine's absence. The panicked girl was able to say that Christine had been grabbed from behind while on their way back from the store. The gang immediately mobilized as the girl said she had a good idea about where they were taking her.

Meg had begun to slow down even before they reached the building she said was the base of the circle in the city. Yami had noticed and bade Yugi to stop and find out why. The boy listened, stopped, and turned back to Meg.

The girl was beginning to turn a light green. Her hands clenched into fists and he could see they were beginning to shake.

"Meg?" Yugi asked. "Are you okay?"

The girl looked to him and Yugi saw the absolute panic in her eyes. She fought it back for a moment, forcing herself to take a breath, before she spoke.

"I know that we need to get her but..." Meg began in a shaking voice.

"We need to!" Jounouchi interrupted. "If we don't, who knows what will happen to her!"

"I know...!"

"So what's the hold up? She's your best friend, right?! So why aren't you-?!"

"I can't get us in!" Meg finally shrieked.

It was a good thing that the group was in a deserted alley as everyone in a good vicinity would have turned to see what the commotion was. Meg gasped for air as everyone looked to her with wide eyes. A tear streaked down her cheek when she began to speak again. "People like me are not allowed in the circle. If I ever did go in without someone sneaking me in, I had to fill out special paperwork in order to even get in the door." More tears began falling down her cheeks. "I want to help 'stine more than anything but... *hic* I can't get us into the damn building."

Anzu, who had been standing closest to Meg, wrapped her in a hug but Meg didn't return it. Her head had fallen into her hands as she heaved sobs. Yugi chanced a glance to the rest of the gang and saw their sad expressions. His connection to his other self gave a sad hum that told him that the emotion had even spread to him.

They were at a stalemate. His other self's destiny was entwined with Christine's and if she were to actually fall... Who knows what disaster might occur?

There was silence for a moment, nobody knew what to even say in the face of a distraught Meg and the idea that Christine could be lost to them forever. Yugi saw Jounouchi go to speak after another moment of silence.

"We'll bust our way in." He huffed out. "We've managed things like this before, we can do it again. We have to."

Meg looked up from her hands, desperate to keep the tears in check. She leveled Jounouchi with a blank stare as she straightened up but was still encased in Anzu's comforting embrace.

"And how do you plan on getting past all the witches with legit magic?" She asked in her typical deadpan voice. "As much as I would love to see the Pharaoh Mind Crush every person we come across, that wouldn't end well."

Yugi fought off the snigger that tried to escape him at the mental eye roll that his other self gave in response to the words. If he was quiet enough, he could hear the words that the Pharaoh was thinking. 'Of course Meg would know about that whole debacle.' Yugi couldn't hold back the soft snigger that time.

At that moment, a saving grace finally appeared.

"Peters!" A whispered voice snapped from the nearby entryway.

Meg snapped up straight, pulling herself away from Anzu's embrace, and searched for the voice. "Over here, Peters!" Meg turned her head and the gang followed her lead.

Yugi recognized the person that walked out of the shadows as the waiter from the restaurant from their beach trip over a year ago. Daisuke was his name, right? He was dressed differently than how Yugi remembered him, a white baseball t-shirt with jean shorts. His other self gave an almost growl at the sight of him but Yugi held him back when Meg began to speak to him.

"Transfer?" She asked, her head tilting in confusion. "What are you doing here?"

Daisuke kept walking until he was in front of Meg but he wasn't able to reply to the question as Jounouchi hopped into the conversation, literally.

"I remember you!" He hollered. "You were that whack job from the beach!"

Honda gave a nod, remembering him as well, then leaned over to Ryuji to explain. Yugi let the memories come back as well but couldn't dwell in them for long.

"Whack job?" Daisuke deadpanned back before giving a roll of his eyes. "Oh, the things fate has in store for me."

Daisuke turned back to Meg. "Come on. I'm getting you guys in."

"And why would you help us?" Anzu asked before Daisuke was able to turn away. "From what I saw, you and Christine didn't get along."

"And what if he's just going to turn us in to the circle?" Ryuji added on. "How can we trust you?"

Daisuke, surprisingly, said nothing. Yugi saw the rise and fall of his shoulders that was the telltale sign of a sigh then he turned around. He kept his eyes on the gang but be lifted the sleeve on his right arm, jutting it out towards Meg.

Right where his elbow was, a hand shaped bruise popped out of his skin. Yugi stared at it for a moment before his eyes caught the snowflake symbol right where the palm would have been. It was Christine's little mark, the symbol of Iliana.

"No way." Meg breathed. "'stine would actually go through with something like this?"

"Believe me now?" Daisuke huffed, not moving.

Meg spoke for everyone before anyone could reply.

"Lead the way."

"Meg-!" Jounouchi went to huff but Meg leveled him with a glare, effectively shutting him up.

"I believe him. Now, let's go; he's our only way in."

Jounouchi gave one last growl before he went silent. Daisuke took that as his chance to turn back the way he came.

"Keep close." He said, already walking in. "We're going in the back way and I don't want you all getting lost."

There were no arguments as everybody raced after the young man. It was completely silent as they entered the building. The only sounds that permeated the area were their footsteps and the creaks of doors as they walked through them.

What amazed Yugi was that there were some people in the rooms they passed but it looked like they didn't even notice the group was there. The people just stared blankly through them.

"Hey, Meg." Yugi asked. "How come those guys can't see us?"

"You can thank the transfer here." Meg replied. "With his powers, he's almost overshadowing them."

Yugi was confused and Meg knew it. "Ok, think of it like this: Transfer here is overwhelming those guy's senses to the point where they are totally blank." Yugi's alarmed expression made Daisuke chuckle.

"I don't hurt them." His words attempted to soothe Yugi. "The effects only last until I am a few feet away, just enough time to get all of you through."

"Oh..." Yugi breathed in relief. "That's a relief."

Daisuke gave out a sigh, the smile slipping from his face. Yugi felt like that was the question he was asked often; did he ever hurt anybody? He remembered the last time he saw Daisuke, lying in a hospital bed with a broken rib or two. He had been so cocky then but now... it was almost like he was a different person.

Meg then jumped to walk next to Daisuke and, thankfully, talked loud enough for everyone else to hear them.

"So... are the rumors about the crone true?" She asked. "Did 'stine have to drink that horrible potion?"

Daisuke gave a nod.

"She's a trooper; drank the damn thing herself." He replied.

Meg gave a wild shiver and a disgusted noise. "I was asked - well, more ordered - to bring the potion and she recognized me." Daisuke gave a sad chuckle. "I had heard rumors that she..." He looked back to Yugi and the boy saw the glance down to the Millennium Puzzle. He looked back towards where he was walking to continue talking. "It's crazy when you think about it but... I'm alright knowing it's her rather than that crazy bitch."

"Crazy bitch?"

"Right, you don't know much about it; my bad."

Daisuke stopped talking for a moment as he peeked around a corner they were passing to see if anyone was coming by. When the coast was clear, Daisuke kept moving and talking. "Just appeared out of nowhere, claiming she was Iliana. She practically has the crone and higher ups eating out of her hand."

The Pharaoh growled in Yugi's mind but he didn't have time to take over his body because Daisuke continued. "I didn't buy it, not for a second, and I know a couple of other people agree with me. The whole confirmation thing was done behind closed doors so how the hell am I supposed to believe it? So, when I heard that your friend was brought here with that necklace around her neck, something clicked. It was lucky I got picked to bring the potion to her-"

"How is that lucky?" Jounouchi huffed.

Anzu shushed Jounouchi while Meg gave him a dour look. Daisuke seemed to brush it off.

"As I said, she recognized me. And, funny enough, she reacted the same way you guys did. If I hadn't ducked fast enough, she'd have hit me clean over."

That set a smile on Jounouchi's face. "It was also dumb luck that I knew Meg and I think that sent a few gears turning in her head."

"Which is how she thought of the vow." Meg breathed.

Daisuke nodded.

"What is that anyway?" Anzu asked. "The 'vow'?"

"It's a promise." Daisuke answered. "One that must be made willingly on both sides."

"It leaves a physical mark on your body so that you and others around you know of something you need to do." Meg explained. "Transfer's is probably the weirdest one I've ever seen; probably cause 'stine's involved."

Daisuke rolled his eyes at Meg's words.

"Think of it like an unbreakable vow. If I didn't go through with it, I'd be in a world of hurt. You only go through with it if you're absolutely sure they'll follow through."

"What did you promise?" Yugi asked, his voice soft.

Daisuke looked over his shoulder to Yugi again.

"That I'd get you all in."

Daisuke said nothing more, turning back around to keep walking.

It was quiet for minutes as the gang continued to follow Daisuke. Yugi heard the soft thoughts of his other self as they echoed in his head. He was obviously confused but didn't say anything.

When they reached a corner, Daisuke told them to stop then continued alone. Meg managed a peek around the corner. A large warlock was stationed at what looked like a door and Daisuke was approaching him. "Sup."

The man turned his head and Meg shivered at the dour expression he wore.

"Hmm." The warlock replied. "You're late."

Late?

"My bad. Conversation that went on for far too long."

The warlock was less than amused. "How about this? I stay a little longer before the next shift; an extra half hour for me."

The warlock seemed to think about before he nodded.

"Fine. I'll let them know."

Turning away, the warlock walked away, turning down another hall. Daisuke situated himself in front of the door and waited there for a second.

"Ready." He whispered, not moving his head.

Understanding the signal, the gang rushed around the corner to meet up with Daisuke. Taking one last look around, he nodded to them. "This is as far as I can get you but she's inside."

"Thanks, transfer." Meg breathed a sigh of relief.

"No problem. I'll see if I can hold them off while you guys wake her up."

Meg pulled open the door and popped inside while the gang stayed out for a moment. Daisuke must have been able to tell their thoughts by their expressions. "Don't even think about it. I didn't do this to get thanked. I did this as an apology." Yugi, while still confused about his motives, nodded anyway. Daisuke jutted his head to the door. "Go on."

They needed no encouragement.

The gang hopped into the room and Yugi felt his heart drop. Christine was laid out on what looked like an altar. Her already pale skin was white as a sheet; the gang had only ever seen her like that when she was sick. Her breathing was faint but she was alive at least. Meg holding onto her wrist like she was checking her heart rate.

"She's alive." Meg, if given the chance, would've collapsed back into tears from relief.

"But how do we wake her up?" Jounouchi asked.

Meg gathered herself to jump turn around.

"We go into her head."

She'd answered it like it was the most common thing in the world. Jounouchi's expression dropped into a deadpan.

"And how do you plan to accomplish that?"

Meg's smile grew.

"Simple." She hopped over to Christine's forehead and placed her thumb on the skin there.

The room pulsed for a second. The lights didn't flicker but the room seemed to disappear into shadow for a moment. "The potion 'stine had to chug completely disarms the mental defenses, allowing anyone to enter. Christine's may be tough but I doubt they could withstand it. Using the potion's effects, we'll enter and wake her up."

There were nervous glances from one to another but there was nothing to be said. This was their only chance.

Everyone approached and settled a hand on Meg's. "All right. Hang on." The room pulsed once more and everything went dark.

Yugi awoke to someone shaking him. His eyes opened to see his other self, kneeling above him.

"Partner!" His other self-gave a bright smile.

"Wha...?" Yugi managed, his voice hoarse and obviously confused.

"Welcome back to the world of the living." Meg's voice shot in with a tease.

The Pharaoh helped Yugi to sit up and see the rest of the gang gathered around. "You ok?"

"Yeah." Yugi nodded. "But where are we?"

They were obviously not in the altar room where they were with Christine's body. It was a ruined building complex. Trees had destroyed many of them, others had simply fallen due to age. In the distance, a large window was still intact but bricks could faintly be seen inside.

"This can't be the inside of Christine's mind, right?" Ryuji asked.

"Maybe Christine had a fail-safe just in case something happened." Meg answered. "One last layer of defense should the others go down. She did say she redecorated."

"Though that hardly answers where we are." Honda retorted.

"Well... if I had to guess..." Anzu answered while Meg gave Honda a dirty look. "I'd say a building that got swallowed by nature."

"It looks like the Asylum map from Dead by Daylight." Meg joked.

The color drained from Meg's face just as she finished speaking when a screech filled the air. The gang had frozen as well, eyes wide with surprise.

"What the...?" Jounouchi gasped. "What the hell was that?"

Meg's face was still pale but she was adjusting much faster than the others. She glanced around the area once more before she spoke.

"Nurse-chan." Meg said simply, words coming out in a huff. "Oh, Andraste's tits."

"Nurse-chan?" Ryuji repeated. "Who's-"

The screech came again and this time, it was closer.

"We need to move."

Meg crouched and snuck through the rubble. Yugi and the Pharaoh glanced to each other before following after, the rest of the gang on their heels. The teen girl was crouched next to a large generator, one that looked like the ones in the video game Meg and Christine played. "Brilliant. I'm sticking my fingers into a generator in hopes of powering it. What could possibly go wrong?"

"The sarcasm is strong in that statement." The Pharaoh muttered to Yugi as he moved to stand nearby.

Meg heard the jab.

"Ha ha. Very funny, your majesty. Now help me repair this thing."

The Pharaoh shrugged but did as he was told. Yugi followed him and the two had to be careful as they played with the wires. The Pharaoh faintly heard a ding everything the wires began to spark. Not looking away from the generator, Meg spoke again. "We need to power up five of these things. We do that, we get out of here through the large doors. And don't let Nurse-chan catch you. Hide in closets or around corners if you hear her coming. A heartbeat will echo in your ears to let you know. If she hits you, run around in circles to lose her and find one of us, we can heal."

The gang nodded nervously but before they could walk away to search for generators, Meg called out once more. "Oh, yeah... also be careful of where the hooks are. Being hooked, in the sex dungeon as I call it or in general, would not be fun."

"Anything else we should know?" Honda asked, almost nervously.

"Don't die."

"Thanks."

The gang filtered off leaving Meg, the Pharaoh and Yugi all working on the generator. The area was quiet for a moment. Meg, a few seconds later, was muttering numbers.

"And... good!"

The light above the generator flashed on and Meg bolted off. "Stay safe, you two!"

The Pharaoh and Yugi gave each other a look before bolting away. They carefully slid around buildings so that a trail couldn't be followed. When the Pharaoh turned his head around a corner, a familiar gasp hit his ears. He turned but there was no one there, only Yugi giving him a confused expression.

"What is it?" He asked.

"Did you hear that?" The Pharaoh asked quickly. "That gasp."

Yugi shook his head. The Pharaoh was sure he heard it but... The person it belonged to wasn't here, they were inside her head! Still, it was disconcerting.

When it was safe, the two headed off toward the large windowed building and saw a generator inside. They attached themselves to it and worked in silence for a moment before a loud screech echoed and a shout of pain hit their ears. They knew that shout...

"Jounouchi!" Yugi gasped.

Somehow, the two were able to see where Jounouchi had fallen. A bright red outline of the blond's body had hit the ground but it vanished as he was picked up by an unknown being. The Pharaoh made a decision quickly.

"Stay here, I'll go get him."

"But..."

"Trust me, I got it."

Yugi nodded before reattaching himself to the generator. The Pharaoh moved toward a broken window, sliding out it quickly and made his way toward where Jounouchi was downed. There was no sound, a near dead silence. The Pharaoh kept walking, maneuvering around rubble so he was always in the shadow of something.

Suddenly, Jounouchi burst from a bush at full speed. A screech was heard and a blur streaked right past where the Pharaoh was hiding. "Holy Shit." He cursed, mentally blaming Meg and Christine for making him slightly impulsive like this. He backed further into his hiding spot. He wasn't sure if his own heart was beating in his ears but it nearly blocked out every other sound in the area. After a second, it faded into nothing. That must have been the heartbeat that Meg was referring to.

Something tapped his shoulder and the Pharaoh nearly jumped out of his skin. He turned to see an unfamiliar face. She had dark skin, glasses and a maroon jacket. With a closer look, the Pharaoh saw that the jacket and her pants were covered in blood. Her bushy black hair was pulled back in a pony-tail and out of her bloodied face. "Who...?" She put a finger to her lips. She was shushing him. The Pharaoh listened but the girl still said nothing. She moved the other way around the rock they were behind before waving him to follow her. He didn't move for a second and the girl waved him again. Was she trying to help? He figured what the heck and followed.

With the Pharaoh on her heels, the girl bolted into the ruins. They were headed straight for where the screeches were going. As they got closer, the heartbeat got louder and louder in his ears. The Pharaoh heard Jounouchi go down once again and suddenly, the girl made him stop. She pointed in the direction of the fallen Jounouchi before she bolted the other way. "What...?" The girl didn't wait for him to finish his question before she bolted toward where a floating being was.

The scary thing was that he recognized it. It was the same being that Christine called the Nurse from that game she and Meg played. She, and the Pharaoh could tell it was a she based on the outfit, wore a white nurse's dress. A white bag hung over her head, black marks almost burned into the fabric to show facial features. Limply in her hand, she was holding a saw that dripped in blood. The girl ran toward the Nurse, seemingly gathering her attention, before she bolted off. The Nurse screeched and shot after her.

The Pharaoh stared at the girl's retreating form for a moment before realizing what she was doing. She led the Nurse away so that he could get to Jounouchi. He quickly shot towards the blond and was happy to see him still moving. He was grumbling under his breath as he moved on his stomach.

"Damn thing..." Jounouchi muttered as he continued to slide on the ground.

The Pharaoh kept trying help him but the blond kept moving. He quickly got annoyed.

"Quit moving, Jounouchi." The Pharaoh snapped quietly.

The blond stopped thankfully and, using the same habit from the generators, the dings echoed in his head as the wounds on Jounouchi vanished. Once Jounouchi was able to stand up, the generator that Yugi had been working on went off. Then another a good distance away. "How many is that?"

"Three."

The two glanced at each other. The screeches were still echoing across the area but they were far away. "Where's Yug?"

"Most likely looking for another generator. I had to leave him to find you."

The blond looked sheepish under the Pharaoh's annoyed glance.

"Sorry. She snuck up on me!"

"You can hear a heartbeat!"

Jounouchi really looked sheepish now. The Pharaoh brushed off his annoyance, beginning to move back into the fray. He hoped to find Yugi soon and keep him safe. The blond followed after and eventually they came to a generator that hadn't been started yet. Yugi nor anybody else had come by this way so the two simply started on it.

The screeches were still far away and neither of them had heard any of their friends fall so they kept at the generator. Was that girl still running distraction? He wondered if she was ok.

When the generator lit up, a scream echoed from a few meters away. It wasn't any of their friends so the Pharaoh assumed it to be the girl.

"What do we do?" Jounouchi asked.

The Pharaoh thought about for a second. She had helped them; it was time to repay the favor.

"I got it. Go find another generator or even one of the doors so that when the last gen pops, you can open it."

Jounouchi nodded and headed off into the brush. The Pharaoh turned and carefully made his way to where he saw the girl fall. She didn't run past him like Jounouchi had done but he saw when the Nurse impaled her shoulder on a large meat hook. The girl gave a blood curdling scream before hanging limply there. It was slightly reminiscent of the videos of cattle that lingered over some websites. The Nurse shot off past the hook, leaving her there as she whimpered in pain.

"Yeowch." Meg's voice appeared from next to him. "That has to hurt."

Meg was crouching next to the Pharaoh, her face a light green.

"Everyone else ok?" The Pharaoh asked.

Meg nodded.

"Honda and Ryuji are on the last gen and Anzu and Yugi are headed to the door. Hopefully they find Jounouchi on the way."

"I did send him that way."

"Good good."

Meg's eyes returned to the hanging girl. Her expression became serious. "I'm going in!"

"What...?"

Meg popped up and ran into the clearing where the girl was hanged.

"How's it hangin', Claudette?" Meg asked cheerily as she pulled her down. "Not a good day, huh?"

The girl, obviously named Claudette, gave a bright smile at the words but still said nothing. "Let's get 'cha patched up. Help me out, Pharaoh." The Pharaoh stepped out from the brush and helped Meg heal the girl.

The screeches were headed back when she stood up straight once again. The last gen also popped and a horn blared across the map. "Doors are powered and Nurse-chan is on our asses. Brilliant."

The girl, Claudette, tugged at one of the hands of both the Pharaoh and Meg and the three bolted across the map. They ducked around trees and foliage until the Pharaoh saw Anzu jumping up and down while shouting at Jounouchi.

"Hurry up!" She cried.

"Working on it!" Jounouchi barked back. "It's being really damn slow!"

Meg made a sound of annoyance and as the three got closer, she let go of Claudette and raced to Jounouchi. She shoved him off the lever and spoke over her shoulder.

"You have to hold it down." She said, yanking down the lever with small sparks coming out of the faulty wiring. "Keep watch you guys."

Nobody argued. All eyes moved to the area in front of the gate. The only sound was the loud clunks and a horn as the door began to open.

The screeches of the Nurse were starting to close in once more.

"I'd appreciate not being sliced, Meg!" Ryuji called quietly.

"It takes a second!"

At the rate it was going, the Pharaoh realized that their hunter was going to catch them before the door opened. What happened next, the Pharaoh didn't expect.

Claudette pulled herself away from the Pharaoh and over to Meg. She gathered Meg's attention and began to mime something. None of the gang understood what was 'said' but Meg did. "Oh no... You don't even know where it is!" Still without a word, Claudette gave a bright, Christine-like, smile and bolted off into the ruins.

"Hey!" Jounouchi called to her. "Where are you going?!"

"Meg?" Anzu's voice wavered in worry.

Meg was silent for a moment and replied just as the door opened.

"She's distracting Nurse-chan then going for the hatch."

"Hatch?" Yugi asked.

Meg glanced back toward where Claudette had run off to. "Meg?" She shook her head and pointed harshly to the door.

"Out." No one moved. "Come on, we only have so much time before she comes back."

The gang hesitated but did race to escape. The arena faded into darkness and the only thing now in their vision was a bright blue door. The Pharaoh couldn't help but think it was made of ice. He glanced around to see that the rest of the gang had made it out.

All except Claudette.

The Pharaoh, concerned, turned to see Meg fiddling with something from the direction they came from. "Come on... come on..." A small screen popped out of the darkness to reveal a sort of scoreboard. Meg tapped a corner and Claudette's back popped up. "All right! Guys, come here!" The gang gathered around her and saw that they were looking at Claudette in real time. She was racing through an area the Pharaoh hadn't seen. She found a large wooden pallet sitting up and just as the Nurse went to slash her, Claudette pulled it down, jostling the killer. "Pallet slam! Wooo!"

Claudette continued to run through the ruins, ducking and weaving around trees to avoid the Nurse shooting towards her, until she came to a metal hatch in the ground. Was that the hatch Meg mentioned? The girl jumped inside, the lid snapped shut and everything went black. "Boo-yah!" Meg cheered, jumping up and down. "We all escaped!"

"Is that a good thing?" Ryuji asked.

"Duh!"

Meg popped away from where the screen was, a bright smile on her face. "GG, Nurse-chan! Sorry, but the Entity is displeased with you!"

"Do I even want to know who the Entity is?" The Pharaoh muttered to Yugi, thankfully, with Meg not hearing.

"I don't think so." Yugi replied. "Let's leave it at that."

The Pharaoh didn't argue.

"What about that girl? Claudette?" Honda asked. "She hasn't come here yet."

"She's fine!" Meg replied in a chirp. "'Stine must have had her be a safety thing just in case something happened in the game. Since she escaped, ol' Claudette is just fine!"

Meg smiled at the gang, hoping it would help calm them down. When it seemed to work, Meg's face became pensive. "Now then..." She hummed, looking towards the large door. "We have to get in there... I think..."

"You think?"

"Hey, I've never been in here before! I'm rolling with common sense. The door is obviously where we want to go."

The gang sighed, making Meg give them dirty looks. "Have I steered you wrong yet? Come on!" Meg began to walk over to the large blue door. With a glance over to the Pharaoh, who nodded, the rest of the group followed after.

Once she reached the door, Meg tried to push it open but it didn't budge. "What the frick? Locked?" She shoved it this time but with the same outcome.

"Something wrong?" The Pharaoh asked.

"Yeah... the door's locked. Surely the potion would have it be open. Why is it shut?"

"Another fail safe?" Anzu asked.

"She did mention yesterday that she had made a few adjustments to her mental defenses but this seems a little too much. I don't know-!" Meg's words cut off in a scream. "What the hell?!"

Black ooze was pooling out from under the door. It bubbled and drooled towards them. The gang backed away, Jounouchi nearly jumping into Honda to get away. Once they were far enough away, which was a good near 20 feet away, the ooze stopped and receded back under the door. Meg watched it go until everything was quiet once more. "'Stine? Is this you? Are you trying to stop us?"

"She knew we were coming, why would she stop us?" Yugi countered.

Meg didn't reply. Her eyes were still locked on the door in front of them.

"Maybe it's another effect of the potion." Ryuji suggested. "To stop outside people from waking her up. It's probably waiting for that crone lady."

"That's a good thought." Meg breathed, nodding her head and turning towards the gang. "Then we need Christine herself to open the door."

"And how do we do that?" Jounouchi asked. "That's why we need to open the door!"

Meg looked to the door again, unsure herself, and the answer became clear.

"Those two indentations."

No one had noticed them before but with everyone looking at them, the obviousness made them grow in size. One imprint was shaped like a sword, the other was an almost circular shaped hole. "We need to find the two things in 'stine's head that open that door."

"Got any clues?"

"Not a single one. Let's go!"

Well that was comforting. The Pharaoh rolled his eyes and followed after Meg when she skipped off away from the door and into the darkness.

It didn't remain dark as even when they entered what looked to be darkness, light was still shining overhead and lighting their way. Nothing was around them so Meg just kept skipping away with the rest of the gang on her heels. The Pharaoh couldn't help but be on edge. What other fail safes did Christine have in her head to protect herself? Why did she have to protect herself like this anyway? Was it after Shadi? Or even Marik? He wished he had some semblance of an answer.

After a few minutes, a flickering light appeared down the way. Meg stopped skipping and quickly walked toward whatever it was. The girl smiled. "Oh! Cool!"

"What is it?" Jounouchi asked, running over as well to see what it was.

Jounouchi stared at the light, his eyes visibly widening. "Wow! It's me!"

The rest of the group raced over at the words and saw flashes of faces and snippets of words. Yugi's face, Grandpa's face, Anzu's face all flashing quickly by.

"What is this?" Ryuji asked almost breathlessly.

"I'm gonna say they're 'stine's memories." Meg answered. "Well, the ones of you guys, I mean."

Yugi stared at it for a minute before recognizing some of the moments being reflected. The popularity contest last year, his duel against Weevil in Duelist Kingdom and hanging out with the gang in school.

"Why are they going by so fast?" Yugi asked.

Meg hummed. She shifted on her hip and brought a hand to her chin in thought.

"I don't know. Maybe it's something to do with the potion? I can't be sure. It's probably confusing as all heck."

"How many things does that potion do anyway?" Anzu asked in response.

"To be honest, I have no idea. Nobody does."

"Then how do we stop it?" Honda asked. "It seems almost impossible."

"Not entirely." Meg countered, a small smile spreading across her lips. "A couple of weeks ago, there was a rumor about someone who was nearly able to get away. Apparently, she had a friend on the inside who tried to make a liquid antidote to it and once drunken, it would remove the effects."

"How did that go?" Anzu asked, worried about the answer.

Meg looked slightly away and the Pharaoh knew it was going to be bad.

"It nearly worked but the potion has a protection backup against potions and that kicked in a couple minutes later. Nearly killed the girl."

That sent the mood spiraling down again. This time, though, it only took Meg a second to turn around to look at them all again. "But I'm sure that this is the best and only way to effectively wake someone up from this. We have to trust that."

Meg turned away from the fast-moving memories and headed back into the darkness. "Let's keep moving." The gang all followed behind her, all wanting to move away from the nervousness of that moment.

As they walked, more memories began to appear along the 'walls'. Yugi always saw Christine pictured there, laughing at something or making a face at whatever was recording her. Yugi also recognized Meg in the images, her arm wrapped around Christine's shoulders in a hug.

They walked another minute or so before Anzu stopped, staring at an image that appeared.

"What is it, Anzu?" Jounouchi asked, stopping to turn back.

Anzu stared for a minute more, ignoring Jounouchi.

"Meg?" Anzu finally said. "Is this you?"

Meg, eyebrow raised, walked over to see what Anzu was talking about. Meg only needed a second before a soft smile took over her face.

"Yep, this is me on the day I met 'stine." Meg replied.

"Really?!"

The boys all raced over to see the memory as well. In it, Meg looked to be around six. Her brown hair was down to her shoulders but there wasn't a ribbon around her neck like her present self. She looked completely defeated and bored seated on a large couch with no one else around. All the adults passed by like she wasn't even there.

"How come you look so upset?" Ryuji asked.

"This was the entrance to the circle back home. I'm not allowed in because..." Meg trailed off since they knew why. "I had to sit out front."

"That's horrible!" Jounouchi growled.

Meg shrugged dismissively.

"You get used to it."

Yugi stared at the image until it began to move like a movie. It was normal speed and Yugi could hear the door inside creak open. Who walked in made his jaw drop.

"Christine?" He breathed.

She was six from the looks of it but completely recognizable. A halo of shoulder length white blonde hair and her icy green eyes were completely identifiable despite the age difference. She was wearing a cute little pink summer dress patterned with flowers. The Pharaoh thought she hated the color pink but she looked comfortable in the color here. Clutching at the hand of an older woman - most likely the woman who raised her - she walked into the room and immediately caught sight of little Meg sitting on the couch.

Yugi could see the gears moving in her head and the smile when she came to an idea; the exact same one she wore in the present. Slipping out of the woman's grasp and successfully sneaking away, she popped down next to Meg with a bright smile.

"Hi!" Christine chirped; her voice slightly squeaky with excitement.

Little Meg didn't reply. She stared back at Christine like she was expecting an annoyed reaction to her presence. Christine was slightly put out at the lack of response but she continued chatting away. "I'm Christine and you are?" Meg still didn't respond and Christine was starting to look nervous. The girl played with her fingers but refused to move away.

"Meghan." Little Meg finally mumbled and Yugi could tell Christine just barely heard it. "But I just go by Meg."

Little Christine's smile was back and she beamed at her new companion.

"How come you aren't going inside? I hear it's something cool today."

Meg seemed nervous to reply. She caved on herself like she wanted to hide.

"I'm not allowed in."

Christine's head tilted in confusion, the smile dropping quickly from her face.

"How come?"

"I'm..." Little Meg seemed to be fumbling over her words now. "I see things. My mom calls me cursed."

A pout crossed Christine's face; she was obviously annoyed at this news. Little Meg barely had a chance to react before the little blonde grabbed her wrist and began to drag her towards the door. "Wait! What are you-!"

Christine didn't heed Meg's complaints and continued to drag her towards the door.

"Dear." A burly man posted outside the door Christine's 'mother' went through stopped the little girls in their tracks. "You can't bring her in."

The Pharaoh recognized the look that crossed Christine's face then. A complete glare. The man froze. There was nothing visible to say what scared him but the shaking of Meg's arm in Christine's grasp increased at whatever feeling was racing through the air. The man's eyes widened further when they flicked away from Christine's face and towards something behind her. The color drained from his face at whatever he was seeing.

"Watch me." Christine hissed back, bringing the guard's eyes back to her.

The man jumped back in fear as Christine continued to drag Meg through the door. Just as the two walked in, the memory vanished. It disappeared into the wall and was gone.

"Woah..." Jounouchi breathed, voice shaking in fright. "That was a heck of a glare."

"Agreed." Honda breathed in reply. "To think she was that scary as a kid."

"'stine was plenty scary." Meg giggled. "That was the first time she did that to get me in." The laughter died then. "She could always get away with it."

Quickly, Meg continued down the path they had been walking on. The gang all looked to each other but no one said anything. Anzu took the initiative.

"What do you mean by that?" Anzu called before racing after her, the boys not far behind to hear the response.

"'stine was the darling child of the circle, their most powerful in years. If she wanted it, she had it." Meg chuckled for a second.

"Surely someone would try to stop her." Ryuji argued.

"The crone would stop her sometimes but 'stine was smart; she'd always find a way around that old bat."

The Pharaoh noticed the wistful expression on Meg's face. Could she be...?

"You almost sound jealous, Meg." He commented.

He expected her to be mad at him but Meg gave another laugh.

"Oh, I was. She had everything I ever wanted: a happy family, the circle as a support... I never had any of that all because I could see something that was never meant to be there."

The watery twinge Meg's voice faded into made it clear that the conversation was over. Nobody argued with her; it was bound to be a tough conversation, especially with everything that has happened to Meg because of her 'curse'. Anzu offered comfort and while it didn't look like Meg wanted it, Yugi and the Pharaoh saw her lean into the embrace.

Another memory appeared on their left side after a second of walking. It was a library based on a passing glance, books stacked high on their shelves. Everyone stopped walking when a little Christine, probably only about nine now, appeared and was pouting at an elderly woman holding a large book. "The crone from home." Meg explained just as Christine spoke in the memory.

"Why won't you let me see it?" She asked petulantly. "I just need two or three pages from it."

The crone wasn't fazed by the annoyed look on Christine's face. She took the book and put it up on a higher shelf. Meg breathed something when she saw the spine of the book but said nothing to explain it.

"It is not something a little girl like you should be reading." The crone chastised. "You may be powerful but you lack control. Move on to something your level."

Christine attempted a glare but the crone was quick to turn on her heel and back out of the aisle. It was another second before Christine huffed and looked back up to the book the crone put away.

"Something doesn't make sense." Meg breathed. "Christine has that book already."

"What?" Jounouchi asked, turning to her.

"I've seen that book in her mom's collection. Why would she need it from the library?"

No one could answer so they turned their attention back to the memory. Little Christine stared at the book for a moment longer before glancing down the aisles.

"Too narrow for Marshmallow." She muttered. "And I'm too short to jump for it..."

She pouted until a bright smile spread across her face. Turning away from the book, Christine bolted down the aisle only stopping when she reached another book. She flipped through the pages until she reached the one she wanted. The gang could faintly hear her reading the passage and attempting to understand it quickly. When she got a passing understanding, she snapped the book closed, put it back on the shelf, then backed further away.

"Is she trying to go for a running start?" Honda asked. "But she's still too short."

Nobody could reply as that was when Christine bolted down the aisle towards the book. Just as she jumped, a faint image of Marshmallow the giant killer snowman appeared, almost sticking out of the bookshelf itself, and with a clawed hand, thrust her higher up into the air. She flew high enough that she could pull the book off the shelf and carefully land with it in her arms.

"10 outta 10 for the landing." Meg applauded.

Christine waited a second like she was expecting some retribution but nothing came. Her smile grew even more as she skipped out of the library, book in hand.

The memory didn't end when she left, it shifted to little Christine reading the large book and forcing herself to understand it. The echoes of thoughts showed that it was complicated and she was constantly frustrated at the complex terms. She didn't give up though. The next scenes melded in and out so fast the Pharaoh and the rest of the gang couldn't see them. She was putting something together that much he could tell; anything more was fuzzy.

When the memory calmed once more, Christine was holding what looked like an amulet and skipping down a path in a park. Meg gasped at the sight. "No way..." Meg's hand covered her mouth and the beginnings of tears pricked at her eyes. What was that thing Christine was holding?

Little Christine turned the corner and stopped short. Meg was seated on a bench, completely curled into a ball. Surrounding her... they looked to be men but the dried blood on their faces and the almost rotting of their skin showed that these guys were dead. This is what Meg saw every day; the amulet must have allowed Christine to see them. They were pestering the little Meg, asking her to do them favors against the people that had schemed them in life. Meg wanted nothing to do with it and her kept her head down like she was trying not to acknowledge them. Christine huffed at the sight before stomping over to her friend.

"Hey!" She huffed at the spirits. "Scram!"

The spirits seemed frightened by the sudden intrusion; her suddenly being able to see them must have scared them. They shot away, fading out of existence. Once satisfied, Christine gave a nod of her head and popped over to Meg. "Ready?"

Meg's eyes were wide, not ever leaving her friend's face.

"How..." Meg was gasping for words. "How did you—"

"Oh." Christine held up her new amulet. "I came across it. No biggie."

Meg looked like she wanted more information but Christine only giggled and began to pull Meg off into the park. The memory faded then and present Meg gave a soft sob.

"She went through all that... just to get a stupid amulet to see what I saw..." Meg gave a hiccup. "Stupid 'stine..."

"Who are you callin' stupid?!" A slightly familiar voice cried out.

Everyone turned and their eyes widened. Six-year-old Christine, pink summer dress and all, was stomping towards them. "You're the one who's stupid!"

"Am not!" Meg immediately argued petulantly, wiping tears away.

"Are so!"

"Am not!"

"Are so!"

Meg looked to want to retort again, anger plain on her face, but the Pharaoh sighed.

"Meg, you're fighting with a six-year-old." The Pharaoh held Meg by the shoulder, physically holding her back. "I don't think you'll win."

Meg gave a sigh in return, pulling back to cross her arms and give a small glare to her tiny friend. Christine took it as a victory and gave a beaming smile.

The little girl then raced over to the Pharaoh and took his free hand, holding it in a tight grip. When he looked down, he saw that the victorious smile was gone and she just looked afraid now. Christine looked back up at him and he could see the fear whirling in her eyes. The Pharaoh picked her up, settling her on his hip. Her arms wrapped around his neck to help situate her weight. She was now eye level with the rest of the gang but kept her face hidden in his shoulder.

"It's hard to believe that this is Christine." Honda commented.

"Yeah." Jounouchi agreed. "She's too freaking bubbly."

Christine snapped her head out of the Pharaoh's shoulder then, glare plain on her face.

"What do you mean by that?" She huffed.

Jounouchi and Honda jumped away in fright. Anzu and Ryuji shook their heads in annoyance.

"So..." Ryuji began slowly. "Christine?"

The little girl turned to him. "Has something happened to you? Why do you look like you're six?" The girl shook her head.

"I'm only a memory. This is how I remember myself as a kid."

"Then where's the real you?" Anzu asked quickly.

Christine shifted back into the Pharaoh's shoulder for a moment. She gathered her courage before speaking again.

"In the big door."

"Big door?"

"The big blue one?" Jounouchi was quick to ask clarification and was happy to receive a nod.

"I've tried to go in and wake up but..." The little girl shook. "The ooze keeps me away."

What ooze she was mentioning needed no explanation.

"What happened to Marshmallow?" Meg asked. "He's normally first on the scene... unless the potion got him too."

Christine tightened her grip around the Pharaoh's neck. She was scared to reply.

"He's melted."

"Melted?!"

Christine nodded.

"I'm not normally awake but when I am, Marshmallow is with me. But when I woke up this time, he was a big puddle. I've just been walking around for what seems like forever."

She looked up to the Pharaoh. "I'm scared, Yami." Tears pricked at her eyes, threatening to spill down her cheeks at any moment. The Pharaoh, wanting to comfort her, wrapped his free arm around the girl and pulled her into a tight embrace. She shook with soft sobs but he didn't feel any of the tears hit his skin.

"We're trying to wake you up, Christine." Yugi finally spoke. "Maybe you can help us?"

Little Christine pulled away from the Pharaoh and stared at Yugi. "We need to find the two things that open the big blue door. Do you know where any of them are?" The girl thought for a moment, wiping some of her tears away. It took a minute but the girl's face finally brightened.

"I don't know where or what the second thing is but I know where to find the sword!"

"Awesome!" Jounouchi cheered. "Can you take us there?"

Christine smiled, asked the Pharaoh to put her down, then reached for Yugi's hand to drag him down the corridor. The boy had to lean down so that he didn't hurt himself from being pulled.

"She's so freakin cute!" Anzu cooed.

"Sure she is." Meg deadpanned. "But demanding. I can't remember if she was like that before."

Anzu rolled her eyes at the reaction before taking off after Yugi. Meg gave a sigh. "I just hope this works."

The rest of the group raced after Yugi, Anzu and Christine, hoping to keep up with them. The little girl kept pulling Yugi through different twists and turns until they hit a large metal door. She finally stopped tugging at Yugi and moved to the door. Christine pushed at it but it didn't move an inch. The little girl huffed and turned back around, this time going towards Jounouchi.

"Can you kick the door open?" She asked him. "I think it's jammed."

Jounouchi beamed in pride. He stepped towards the door.

"Don't worry!" He exclaimed. "I've got this, no problem."

Christine, not staying where she was, quickly moved to hide behind the Pharaoh's leg. He glanced down at her then to Yugi. The boy was looking to his friend as well, a smile trying to fight its way up to his lips.

"Shut it, Yugi." The Pharaoh huffed at his partner.

"But it's so cute!" Yugi giggled back.

The Pharaoh huffed again but did nothing to try and pull the little version of his girlfriend away. "Though that does make me think." The Pharaoh glanced once more to Yugi. "Why is she clinging to you? At this age, she knew Meg, not you, so..."

The Pharaoh immediately suspected that it was due to what Christine told him over a year ago. The thing about she, and including Meg now, was from another world where he and the rest of his friends were only the creations of some man's head. She must have already known about him and knew he wouldn't hurt her. He couldn't tell Yugi now, he had no proof to back up his claim.

It could also be...

"Perhaps she has some of her present memories still." The Pharaoh suggested. "Maybe, deep down, she remembers who we are."

"Maybe." Yugi nodded his head to the thought, turning back to Jounouchi who was getting ready to kick the door down.

There was a tug at the Pharaoh's pants but he wasn't surprised. The Pharaoh looked back down to see Christine looking up at him now. Her expression was blank but her eyes were questioning him; asking why he didn't tell Yugi the truth. Perhaps she really did have some of her memories. He shook his head. Not yet. Christine reluctantly nodded, understanding for now.

"Yah!" Jounouchi shouted as he kicked the door and it came open with a loud BANG!

The metal door swung on its hinges but thankfully didn't close again. "Awright!"

"Brute force does help in some situations; who knew?" Meg teased.

"Shut it!"

With a huff, Jounouchi turned to enter the room. The rest of the gang went to follow but Meg stopped short.

"'stine?"

The little girl was still where she was standing before. Her hands behind her back and a soft smile on her face. "Aren't you coming with us?" Christine shook her head.

"I can't go any further; my memory won't let me. I have to stay here."

"Then where will you go?" Yugi asked.

"I'll go sit with Marshmallow. It's a deserted corner of my mind so even if the crone gets in, I'll be safe there."

Christine gave another bright smile. "And when you get me up, I can send Marshmallow to wreck some people up!"

The rest of the gang laughed but Meg still seemed nervous. Christine noticed it and her smile became more comforting. "Don't worry, Meggie. I'll be just fine!" The name made Meg smile and she finally nodded.

With a chirp of goodbye, Christine ran off into the darkness and faded away. Nobody spoke for a long moment. They let the moment marinate before turning back and entering the room where Christine had led them.

It was a circular room, stone cobbled floor with a large podium in the center. Five stone doors surrounded it and no one knew what they were for.

"Weird." Ryuji breathed.

"Agreed." Anzu nodded her head.

Meg walked up to the podium and immediately gave a cackle, doubling over herself in her laughter.

"What?" Jounouchi asked.

Meg only continued to cackle. He looked to Yugi for an explanation.

"It's a puzzle room?" That was the only thing Yugi had that made some sort of sense.

"Yeah, a Crossword Puzzle room!" Meg cackled. "Typical 'stine!"

"How is that typical?" The Pharaoh asked, crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow.

"She and her dad would do these all the time back home. 'Stine's pretty good at them."

Meg looked to the podium again. On the piece of paper were five horizontal lines and one vertical. At some point in each of the horizontal lines, it crossed the vertical one. "If my guess is right, if we answer all five of these horizontal clues, we get the vertical answer and the sword."

"Neat!" Anzu cheered.

"Go for it!" Jounouchi cheered as well.

Just as he finished, the door they entered slammed shut on its own and the gang heard it lock. Honda, who was standing the closest, stepped over and tugged on the handle. The door didn't move an inch so Honda desperately tried to pry it open.

"This thing ain't budging!" He growled.

"Then what do we do?" Ryuji asked.

"The only thing we can do." Yugi simply said, turning his gaze to Meg. "We solve the puzzle."

Meg understood and looked back to the paper situated on the podium. A pencil had appeared next to it. Meg picked it up and glanced through the clues until one caught her eye.

"Ok... Four across: 'Meg's Dragon Age husband'..." While no one else understood at all, Meg's head tilted. "Dragon Age? Well, that's not so confusing. Alistair, duh."

She wrote it on the paper and when she lifted her pencil after the last letter, one of the large stone doors gave a loud thud as it suddenly hit the ground. Across from the podium, what looked to be the shining outline of a sword began to appear out of the dark of the room.

"Do the next one!" Honda cried. "It's working!"

"Right! One across: 'King under the Mountain'." Silence. "Oh geez."

Meg began to tap the given pencil. "Ummmmmm... I don't know this one."

"What?!" Jounouchi screeched. "Why not?!"

"This is 'stine's head! I can't know everything!"

She hummed, tapping the pencil even harder on the podium. The crackling of stone broke the silence. One of the stone doors was beginning to open.

"Meg!" Anzu shrieked.

"I still don't know the answer!"

The stone door continued to open and the Pharaoh began to see... something beyond the opening. It wasn't more of the same ooze, it was something different, more animal-like. The little shapes moved with the grace of a liquid but this water was filled with some kind of oil. It made the little animals slop towards you. And when the oil hit the ground, the sizzle of something rose up from it.

"It's a failsafe!" The Pharaoh called to his friends. "If you don't answer the clue in a certain amount of time, you die."

"Brilliant, 'stine, just what I need! A time limit!"

Meg groaned again. "A king under a mountain. What in Andraste's name could that mean?"

No one else knew what it meant but the Pharaoh had a sudden inkling. Though, not without a hint. Reflected on the opening stone - just a flash of an image - he saw an image... no, a cover of a book he had seen Christine clutching tightly when Grandpa bought her a copy. She'd forced him to read it religiously like it was some kind of bible. The name hit him then.

"Meg, I know-!"

"What? I'm working here!"

The Pharaoh groaned in annoyance. She really was Christine's friend, she was just as headstrong sometimes.

"Thorin!"

"Huh?" Meg turned around to look at him, obviously confused. "Who?" The Pharaoh groaned again.

"Thorin! King under the Mountain!"

It took Meg a second to understand. She ran it through her head for a second before a loud 'Oooooooh!' escaped her mouth and she quickly turned to write it down.

Just as she finished writing, the stone door slammed shut once and fell backwards. The outline of the sword across the room was becoming brighter and clearer. They were on the right track.

"How did you know that?" Yugi asked loud enough for everyone to hear.

The Pharaoh gave his partner a deadpan look. Yugi only raised an eyebrow in response.

"She made me read the book."

Yugi understood immediately, remembering the moment as well in the back of his mind. He nodded gravely before turning back to Meg.

Meg had returned to the crossword puzzle and was glancing through the three remaining clues.

"Ok…." Meg commented aloud. "What's up with this hint?"

"What's the hint?" Ryuji asked.

"All it says is 'The Real Ice Queen.'"

Meg stood there for a minute, tapping the pencil incessantly on the podium. Did she not know this one as well? The crackling of the stone door started again.

"Meg! I'd really not like to get used to this!" Jounouchi huffed at her.

Meg ignored the blond, tapping on the podium a little more. She stared at the hint and constantly flicked her eyes to the empty squares the answer would fill. It was only five letters; it shouldn't be this hard! A light bulb then lights up in Meg's head. Ice queen?

"Weiss!"

"Who?" Honda asked, obviously confused.

"It's a joke! Ice Queen was a nickname of a character in a show 'stine and I watched."

Nobody understood what she was talking about but nobody argued since the stone slammed closed and fell to the ground. The sword grew brighter once more.

Two more.

Meg looked to the third hint and raised an eyebrow. "One of the Egyptian gods?"

"Horus?" Anzu suggested.

"Too short."

"Sekhmet?" The Pharaoh suggested as well.

"Still too short. The answer's eight letters."

The group hummed. The Pharaoh rummaged through every god he could remember but couldn't name one that had eight letters in its name.

The stone door began to crumble open.

"Meg!" Yugi cried.

"Working on it!"

It should be easy! It was one of the... It was a question. Christine hated these hints in puzzles because they were always misleading. It was some kind of joke or pun.

A joke...

It hit. "Lady Gaga!"

"Huh?" The Pharaoh asked, he'd never heard of a god named that.

Meg cackled as she wrote down the singer's name. "Meg?"

"It's an inside joke." Meg replied, continuing to cackle.

The gang looked to each other and sighed. Meg was definitely strange. But her strangeness was helping them solve this puzzle. They weren't going to complain. "Ok, last hint. 5 across-" The hint made Meg's heart drop. Oh no...

'The Pharaoh's true name.'

"What?!" Meg shrieked in disbelief.

"What is it?" Jounouchi called to her.

Meg couldn't say anything. If she said the hint aloud, it would give away the fact that she and 'stine weren't from this world. What would they say to that? She kept quiet and kept her eyes on the hint.

'What do I do?' Meg thought. ''Stine doesn't remember his name and since I got here, neither do I. How on earth can I solve this?!'

The door continued to open while Meg was beginning to panic. She could hear the cries of the gang behind her but she didn't know what to do. She couldn't answer the hint!

There was a giggle in Meg's ear then. Meg looked up from the paper to look around. What the... There was no one around; the closest was Anzu but she was facing away from her. A scratching sound hit her ears and Meg turned around to see something writing on the paper.

'I'm kidding, Meggie.' The invisible pencil wrote. 'I'm not that mean.'

Huh? The pencil continued to write, crossing out the original hint, writing a new one and added more boxes onto the answer. 'This one should be a little easier, eh?' Meg looked to the new hint.

'My true name.'

Meg blinked. What in the heck just happened?

The shouts of the gang hit Meg's ears once more and she realized that she was wasting time. 'Stine's true name, huh? She remembered last night when Christine showed her the memory of who she was. Her thoughts also crossed to who her new friend was. The possibility of finding out where her curse comes from hitting her again. Meg heard her own voice coming out of the other girl's mouth and saying the name. Meg wrote it down just as the Pharaoh shouted her name.

'Iliana.'

There was a growl and Meg turned just in time to see something jump in front of her. There was a slicing sound then a thump on the ground. One of the oily animals had jumped out of the door and had shot towards Meg as she was finishing the puzzle. By how close it was to her, Meg guessed that she had finished just in time. But who sliced it in half? The gang was staring at someone next to her and Meg smiled as she recognized the silver armor. "Took you long enough, Sword of Eldath."

The woman had blonde hair pulled back into a tight braid that fell down her back. She had blue eyes and a teasing smile as she looked back to Meg. Silver armor protected her body and the sword, which Meg guessed was the one that saved her, was being placed back in its sheath.

"Took you long enough to finish that puzzle, Trickster." The woman retorted.

"Hah!"

The rest of the gang was completely confused. What was going on?

"Uh... Meg?" Anzu began shakily. "Who is that?"

"This!" Meg waved her arms dramatically towards the woman. "Is the answer to the Crossword Puzzle. Neyla Brighton, Sword of Eldath, and 'stine's Dungeons and Dragon's character."

The woman gave a chuckle at the dramatic introduction. The Pharaoh could hear bits of Christine's voice in the woman's - Neyla's - voice but it couldn't be any more different.

"I'm still confused." Jounouchi breathed.

"Me too." Honda agreed.

Meg huffed in annoyance. Neyla placed a hand on Meg's shoulder and the girl settled. Neyla turned back to the gang to speak.

"I am a creation of Christine's mind." Neyla explained. "Through her, I have my identity and powers as a Blade Mage. When she was in her original home, Vanadis Zesse - Meg's trickster persona - and I went on many adventures."

Meg snickered and the Pharaoh recognized it as the same laugh Christine would do when she was teasing: the 'Mutley' laugh.

"I got us out of a lot of trouble." She laughed.

"You also got us into a lot of trouble."

Meg didn't appear apologetic but she did look mad. She crossed her arms, petulantly.

"Hardly. Remember the dragon?"

"Yes but you're the one who pissed the cultists off in the first place."

"Yeah...? But I managed to get rid of said cultists."

Neyla rolled her eyes to look at the gang. A less than amused expression on her face.

"She tricked the dragon into eating the cultists instead of her."

Meg snickered again, apparently prideful in her accomplishment.

"Woah!" All the boys cried.

"That's crazy, Meg!" Yugi cheered.

The praise immediately went to Meg's head as she beamed and gave a lighthearted salute. Neyla only seemed slightly annoyed but she was still smiling.

The Pharaoh's eyes moved to the sword strapped to her hip. The one they had been revealing on the opposite side of the room was gone and his mind shifted to little Christine mentioning the 'woman with the sword'.

"Neyla?" He called and the Blade Mage turned her gaze to him. "Your sword... is it the one to open Christine's mind?"

Neyla unsheathed it. The shape of it was the same as the lit outline during the puzzle. It flickered in the light of the room.

"It is." Neyla nodded her head. "I was chosen by Christine to be a guardian of her inner mind during what you all know as 'Battle City'."

"Though what happened?" Ryuji jumped in to ask. "How come you weren't at the door itself to protect it?"

"The potion. It has thrown Christine's mind into disarray. The trial against the killer you overcame must have been the only defense truly left intact, though perhaps weakened. I was sealed within this puzzle and I'm sure that many of the other defenses that she has made after expelling the trespasser have been taken down or adjusted to fit that witch's needs."

'Trespasser'? The Pharaoh wasn't sure what to make of that. The only one he knew who could enter minds like they were was Shadi. It seems weird that Christine would have a large number of traps just for Shadi. Neyla didn't explain who the trespasser was and no one asked her. "Since you have freed me from the potion's hold, you only need one more object to enter Christine's inner mind and release her."

"Do you know what it is?"

Neyla nodded, though it seemed hesitant.

"I must have seen it but I cannot say what exactly it is; I have only seen its wielder."

She said nothing more. She actually seemed nervous to mention anything more. Nobody could argue with what she gave; it was something at least.

"Do you know where we can find them?" The Pharaoh asked, quickly getting off the topic.

Neyla turned away, pointing to a newly revealed door. It clicked and swung open.

"The guardian is through there." Neyla turned back to face the group. "I do not know what effect the potion has taken on them so be on your guard."

Neyla sheathed her sword once more, walked past them and towards the door the gang walked in. With a gentle push, the door opened up.

"Where are you going?" Anzu asked.

"I am returning to the door. My presence will be needed there when you come with the second item."

Saying nothing more, Neyla continued out the door. It closed behind her and vanished into a dark mist. The gang was left in a dark hall with only a light to guide them down the corridor.

"Well that was cheery." Jounouchi huffed.

"She's like that." Meg explained. "'Stine's put that girl through some serious shit."

Meg began to skip down the corridor. The gang quickly following on her heels since there was nowhere else to go.

"What do you mean by that?" Yugi asked.

"'Stine made the character. She created her backstory, her personality, everything about her. I even think she's planning on killing her in some crazy heroic way so that she can come back and have a normal life."

"Dang." Honda breathed. "Christine's really put a lot of thought into that."

"Duh. You have to. To make a convincing character, you need to make them have pros and cons, virtues and faults. I'm sure Kazuki Takahashi did the same for you guys."

"Who?" Yugi asked and Meg stopped dead in her tracks.

**Yeah! Another one down!**

**Bakura: How's the rest of the story going?**

**Good! Except... the Yu-Gi-Oh website no longer has subtitles on the website to help me write the episodes... **

**Bakura: R.I.P**

**And then my computer keeps switching into French so typing has been weird.**

**Bakura: Double R.I.P**

**It's been an exciting couple of days. **

**See you all in the next chapter**


	4. The Reveal

**Hey guys! This is a very exciting chapter and I'm curious to see what you all think of it. **

**I will warn you there are multiple triggers in this chapter: blood, death etc. I have labeled the section where it starts and where it ends with 'Trigger Warning Starts/Ends Here'. Please read at your discretion. Other than that, please enjoy the chapter!**

***I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh. I only own my OCs: Christine and Meg. If you recognize anything, I do not own that either. Fandoms I reference include: Dragon Age, a photo shoot by Yaboy Meghan, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers and possibly more.***

The Pharaoh knew immediately that she had blown the entire secret wide open. He gave a sigh as Meg didn't move for a whole minute.

"Nice going, Meg." He told her and the girl finally moved.

She slammed her hand into her forehead loudly, repeatedly hitting herself in the head in fury.

"Maker's breath!" She cursed. "Me and my big mouth!"

The gang had stopped to stare at her. Meg cursed at herself for a moment longer. When she finally calmed down, she turned back around, a nervous expression on her face.

"Who's Kazuki Takahashi?" Jounouchi asked, a harsh tone to his voice.

Meg glanced to the Pharaoh, remembering that he knew the truth. With no other option, he waved his hand, almost telling her that she had permission to tell them. She gave a sigh.

"The manga artist who created and designed you guys."

"Huh?!"

"We can't be manga characters!" Anzu argued. "We're real people!"

Meg played with her hands in nervousness. The Pharaoh could see that her face was losing its color and quickly becoming green.

"It's true." Meg said quietly. "That was how 'stine and I first got introduced to you guys; through a manga called 'Yu-Gi-Oh!' I don't know how to explain how 'stine is connected to this place but for me growing up, you guys were characters in a series."

The gang began to argue amongst themselves. There were shouting, trying to make sense of what they had just heard. Yugi wasn't saying anything, his eyes were stuck on Meg's face. The girl's face was becoming greener as the shouting was getting louder and louder. The Pharaoh sighed in sympathy to the girl and he moved to Meg's defense.

"Guys, hold on." He called into the argument.

The Pharaoh stepped to Meg's side and placed a hand on her shoulder. "There is no need to berate Meg about this. Saying it can't be easy for her as well."

There was a moment of silence. Everyone glanced to Meg's green face. She looked ready to cry. The silence was eventually broken by Yugi.

"Did you know?" Yugi asked softly.

The Pharaoh nodded immediately. There was arguing for a second but it stopped when he spoke again.

"Christine told me over a year ago, the day before she admitted to you all about what she was." There were soft gasps from Anzu and Honda but he ignored them. "It was hard even for her to admit it. But... she had proof of it; she had a book that detailed the first few incidents after Yugi put together the puzzle, albeit with a few key differences of course."

Meg sighed, dramatically. She wiped the water gathering in her eyes away before speaking.

"Ah, the original stuff." She placed a hand on her head. "The good stuff."

The Pharaoh bopped her on the head and she made a sound of annoyance. "What was that for?"

"Is there anything here that could prove it?"

Meg's annoyed expression dropped as she thought. She eventually gave a shrug.

"Probably. Who knows where it could be though."

Her eyes then narrowed. "And shouldn't we be looking for the other guardian person?"

The Pharaoh looked to his friends. They all wore confused and scared expression. They needed to be assured before they continued on.

"We should prove it first."

Meg looked to the gang as well then nodded. She waved them to follow her and there was only a moment of hesitation before they did.

The Pharaoh could feel Yugi's eyes on him. They questioned him, asked him why he didn't tell him sooner. "I couldn't say anything, Yugi."

"Why not?" Yugi retorted.

"I promised Christine that I would keep it quiet. Believe me, I reacted the same way you all are."

"Why didn't she tell the rest of us then?"

The Pharaoh glanced to his partner and saw the betrayed expression on his face. He was upset that his friends were keeping secrets from him. The Pharaoh placed a hand on Yugi's shoulder.

"She didn't want you all to think differently of her. She didn't know how you'd react with the knowledge that she knew some of the things that were going to happen. She had already cried from fear when I confronted her about what she is. Yugi... Can you blame her for being scared?"

Yugi didn't reply. With their bodies separated like this, Yugi's thoughts were jumbled in the Pharaoh's head. He couldn't understand what his partner was thinking but decided to stay out of his thoughts.

"She is our friend." Yugi finally said softly. "There isn't anything that could happen for us to change that."

The Pharaoh smiled down to his partner. He gripped his shoulder tighter before he let go. That was when Meg called that she found a memory to use as proof.

The gang raced over to see Meg near cackling again.

"What's so funny?" Jounouchi asked.

"I remember this day!" Meg laughed. "It's hysterical!"

The gang looked to the memory and saw what looked to be a large convention center. Christine and Meg were walking through it, laughing brightly at whatever they were talking about. The two were dressed up: Meg in what looked like Renaissance clothes in dark browns and reds carrying an instrument and a hardly recognizable Christine wearing a black wig over her bright blonde hair and yellow contacts over her normal green ones, a dark black skirt with a dark red or maroon almost hoodie top that barely covered a thin brown bra. The Pharaoh had to fight off a blush.

"What are you two doing?" Ryuji asked.

"Cosplaying, duh."

When no one replied, Meg continued. "This con was where I was allowed to pick our theme so I had us dress up as Dragon Age characters. I'm the bard from the third game, Inquisition, and 'stine is her waifu, Morrigan."

"Waifu?" The Pharaoh asked, almost nervously.

Meg laughed loudly. She was teasing him for being jealous.

"No need to worry, Pharaoh. Morrigan was the character 'stine's Warden romanced when I made her play the first game, Origins. 'Stine has a thing for sassy mages."

That cleared up who it was but waifu? The Pharaoh's continued raised eyebrow made Meg relent. "Fine! 'Stine went lesbian for Morrigan when I was introducing her to the characters, hence she is the waifu."

"Ah."

Meg turned back to the memory, a soft smile on her face. The gang watched the two girls for a moment before Jounouchi asked a question.

"How is this hysterical?" He pointed to the memory and looking to Meg.

Meg gave a snicker. This couldn't be good.

"Look at who we meet." She simply said.

Everyone looked back and Yugi recognized the spiked hair that walked past them. Memory Christine perked up immediately.

"Yugi!" She cried. "Duel me!"

"Agh!" The person dressed as Yugi cried before he ran off.

Meg and Christine were in hysterics at the sight. Yugi stared wide eyed before snapping his head to Meg.

"What?!" He gasped.

Meg gave an unhelpful shrug.

"You're just a popular person to cosplay, Yugi." She told him with a laugh.

Yugi looked back to the memory to see memory Christine and Meg walking over to more cosplayers and recognizing some of them as his friends. No... they were dressed as his friends. There was a Ryuji, a Honda, a couple of Yugi's and even a Pharaoh but... The Pharaoh glared at Meg then.

"I would never wear something like that." He huffed at Meg.

"It's cosplay! You can do whatever you damn well please."

The Pharaoh huffed again. The person cosplaying him was made to look like a stripper of some kind. "Lighten up, Pharaoh! It's a joke on the name: instead of Yu-Gi-Oh! it's now Yu-Gi-Hoe!" Anzu laughed at the pun while Yugi laughed at the annoyed expression on his other self's face.

The memory faded while Christine was taking a picture with the stripper Pharaoh and everyone was quiet. Meg was the first to speak when the silence was getting to her. "There are probably hundreds of memories like that: the both of us playing video games with you guys being the characters, us reading the manga, us watching the show, yadda yadda." Meg stopped to take a deep breath. She looked up to the gang again, nervously. "Do you all believe me now?"

There was a small silence. It even made the Pharaoh slightly nervous. What were they thinking? Jounouchi was the first to wrap an arm around Meg's shoulders.

"Ya should've said something." Jounouchi sighed to her. "Seeing ya turn green was kinda scary."

"Oh shut it!"

Everyone laughed. Jounouchi definitely brought up the mood; he was good for that.

The Pharaoh wanted to enjoy the nice change of pace but his eyes caught onto something moving in the shadows. No one else saw it so the Pharaoh was the only one to turn and look at it. It was only a shadow but he was able to see the outline of a female figure. In the faint light, a glimmer of jewelry on the woman's chest reflected back at the Pharaoh. She seemed to realize he saw her and bolted away.

"Come back!" He called, racing after her.

The Pharaoh ignored the calls of his friends, continuing to chase after the shadowed woman. He had to concentrate on keeping up with her.

The woman took quick turns, jumping into open doors and hoping he'd get lost in her wake, but he kept at her and was starting to close in. She stopped for a second, looking for somewhere else to go but the Pharaoh was able to grab her wrist before she could bolt off again. "Stop..." He panted. "I'm not going to hurt-!"

The woman had turned around and the Pharaoh was greeted with Christine's face. The words had stopped dead in his throat. She was slightly older but it was her face. The same face that was on the canvas Pegasus had sent her right after Duelist Kingdom. The face of who Christine really was. "Iliana…"

The 3000-year-old queen shrunk back at her name. She tried to pull her wrist away but the Pharaoh held fast. "Please, say something." Her gaze snapped up to him, her expression something akin to defeat. Her free hand moved to her throat and she shook her head. "You can't speak?" She nodded and the Pharaoh understood immediately. "The potion. It must have understood that you had something important to say so it silenced you." She nodded again. "Geez, I can't wait to get my hands on that crone!"

Iliana raised her hand, a gesture he took to mean 'stop', so he did. The woman looked up to him, her almost sad expression puzzling him, then turned her head. He followed and was surprised to be looking at the large blue door, the entrance of Christine's mind. They had run all the way back here? Why was she so intent on it? "We're trying to open it. We need to find the second guardian." Iliana nodded to his words.

The queen pulled herself free of the Pharaoh's grip and her hands moved to her dress. On her chest was a large scarab chest piece made of gold and other precious stones that helped to hold up her dress. It detached easily and she held it out to him. The Pharaoh took it hesitantly, his puzzled expression moving back to his 'queen' quickly. She gave a silent laugh then pointed to the door. He turned back to it.

Neyla, the Blade Mage, was already walking towards it, her sword unsheathed. She lifted it up towards the door only for it to be sucked into the spot laid out for it. The Pharaoh understood. "This is the second object!" He turned to look to Iliana once more but the queen was gone. "What?"

"Pharaoh!" Someone called and he turned.

The gang and Meg raced towards, all gasping for air when they stopped. Meg was the first to pop up and glare at him. "What the hell were you thinking?!" She snapped. "Running off like a toddler?! What if you got lost?!"

"But I didn't get lost..." The Pharaoh began to say.

"Eh! Don't argue with me, buster!"

"Hey." The Pharaoh settled the chest piece at his side as he retorted. "The only one who can call me 'buster' is Christine."

"And that's simply because you can't stop her from calling you that." Neyla called into the conversation.

The Pharaoh leveled her with an annoyed expression but the Blade Mage only laughed. She sobered after a few seconds, holding out her hand. "The item, please?"

"Item?" Yugi asked. "What Item?"

The Pharaoh held up the chest piece for everyone to see. Yugi, who had seen Pegasus' canvas, knew what was immediately. "Is that...?"

The Pharaoh nodded.

"Turns out, Iliana herself was a guardian." The Pharaoh replied.

The gang's jaws dropped. They were clearly not expecting that. They looked to Neyla, who wore a bright smile on her face.

"Indeed." Neyla nodded her head. "Both halves of who Christine are were chosen. Myself from her past and the queen for her now."

The Blade Mage took the chest piece and, just like her sword, it was sucked into the door when she held it up. There was a loud click and the door began to open. Large drops of the black ooze spilled out but it was fading as quick as it appeared.

"That's still gross." Anzu whispered.

"Agreed." Jounouchi added.

The gang remained where they were for a second when there was a flash of light above their head. Neyla snapped her head towards the shadows in front of the door, a harsh glare on her face.

"You all must hurry." She quickly said. "The crone is on her way."

"But you're weaponless!" Meg cried. "How will you defend yourself?"

"I will be fine."

"I'll stay with her." Anzu jumped in. "The crone won't hurt regular people like Christine, right?"

"Probably." Meg shrugged. "I have no idea. 'Stine's a special case but it may hold her for a second."

"I'll stay too." Honda stepped towards Anzu. "If there is more of us, she may be less likely to attack."

Ryuji stepped over to the two as well. He didn't have to say what was on his mind but everyone knew. The blond was quiet for a moment. Jounouchi turned to the Pharaoh then.

"You and Meg go in." He said. "Christine can't hide anything from you two."

The Pharaoh nodded. Yugi stepped over to his other self, a determined gleam in his eyes. He wasn't going to be left behind. The spirit nodded again and Yugi's face melted into a smile.

The was another flash that made Meg jump this time.

"Alright!" She shrieked. "Let's go already!"

Yugi and the Pharaoh nodded, turning to enter the opened door.

"Be safe!" Anzu cried, her voice warbling slightly from some kind of strange barrier.

The Pharaoh looked back to his friends after a few steps to see that they had vanished. There was no turning back he guessed. He looked back into the innermost part of Christine's mind.

The inside of the door was stained black from the ooze. They walked through what looked to be grass but it was stained black as well.

"What in Andraste's name is going on in here?"

"I wish I knew." Yugi replied.

The Pharaoh kept looking around. What looked to be birds were trapped in the black ooze, desperately trying to free themselves. He stepped over to one in an attempt to help it but the bird cawed weakly at him in protest.

"They'll probably be freed when 'stine gets up."

The Pharaoh reluctantly agreed and the three continued walking. The large tree in the center of the room drooped, weighed down by more of the black sludge. "Damn, the crone left nothing uncovered."

"You got that right." The Pharaoh agreed.

"What about that?" Yugi piped up.

He was pointing at a corner of the room that was relatively clear of the sludge but none of them could see what lay beyond that darkness.

"I... I don't know what that is..." Meg hesitantly said.

"Should we...!"

Yugi was cut off when a scream echoed out of the darkness. The Pharaoh recognized it immediately.

"Christine!" He called but there was no reply.

All three of them looked into the dark corner then each other. "She's in there."

There was a moment of silence. Meg wrung her hands together in slight nervousness.

"I sure hope 'stine won't kill us for barging in." Meg muttered.

"If she's screaming like that, then I don't think she'll mind." Yugi countered. "Let's go!"

**_TRIGGER WARNING STARTS HERE_**

The boy was first to walk into the shadows, vanishing into nothing. Meg and the Pharaoh looked to each other again but didn't say anything. They both stepped into the shadows as well.

It was dark. The only light was a small flickering candle on what looked like a table. Was it nighttime?

"Where...?" The Pharaoh began to say before a loud thump echoed not far from where they were.

There was a rustle of fabric and a humanoid shadow popped out of the darkness. The Pharaoh narrowed his eyes to try and see it but it was just too dark. A small hand took the handle of the candle and a familiar face was illuminated by the light.

"Christine!" Yugi cried but the girl didn't reply. She didn't even look towards her name.

She was six again from the looks of it. Her clothes were obscured in the dark but the bands of colored fabric were clear in the candlelight.

The little girl rubbed her eyes lightly before she climbed down whatever she was sitting on and walked into the darkness. The three followed after her. She walked out an opening in the wall then stopped.

"Kari?" The little girl called.

"Kari?" Meg whispered to Yugi and the Pharaoh.

Both boys shrugged. They looked back to the girl when she called the name again.

"Kari? Where are you?" There was a frightened shake to her voice.

Another thump shook the area and little Christine jumped in surprise. "Kari!" She called a little louder. Still, no one came. The three saw her swallow before she walked out of the room. The little girl began to walk through the darkness until she came to a large grey lump on the ground. "There you are, Kari!" She ran to the lump, setting the candle on the ground before running her hands through the fur. "What are you doing on the ground, Kari? Where is…."

The little girl froze. Her eyes were wide in... fear? It took a minute but she finally lifted her hand to see what frightened her. It was stained in red liquid.

Blood...

Meg gasped loudly.

"Oh god... oh god..." She was gasping.

Little Christine was still shell shocked, staring at her hand. She eventually looked back to the lump of grey fur. The Pharaoh stepped around to recognize it as the wolf from Pegasus' portrait of her family. Was this what happened to it?

It hit him.

"This is the day her family was killed." He breathed.

"I think I'm gonna be sick."

Little Christine - Iliana - moved again, picking up her candle and moving quickly through her home. The three, although terrified at what they had to see next, followed after their friend.

"Mother!" She cried. "Father!"

She stopped once more and in the dim candlelight, the three saw what was slumped in the doorway. It was a beautiful slim hand connected to a head of white blonde hair, the same color as Christine's. The rest of the body lay in a puddle of red liquid... blood, staining the hair that was stuck in it. "Mother..."

"Oh god..." Meg gasped again.

Yugi was quick to grab the girl before she collapsed to the ground. She was gasping for air, her eyes stuck on the sight in front of her.

Her mother... Whoever was here, they didn't care that they were killing women and possibly children.

Iliana bolted off again. The Pharaoh was the first to chase after her, Yugi and Meg a few steps behind him. The little girl stopped before she reached the entrance of another room. There were loud noises, clangs of metal echoed inside. Iliana gave another loud swallow. She blew out her candle, most likely to stop anyone from following after her shadow and set the stick onto the ground. It was a good idea. Hopefully her hair didn't get her caught.

Iliana poked her head into the room ever so slightly. From where they were standing, there didn't seem to be anyone in the room so the little girl was safe for now.

Suddenly, a hand grabbed her hair and wrenched her fully into the room.

"Ahh!"

"I found a little brat!" The man holding her cheered.

"Hey!" Yugi shouted.

The three shot into the room, hoping they could help their friend. The little girl fought back against her assailant, pulling enough to hurt her hair more.

"Well well..." The man chuckled. "If it ain't Adrastus' little brat! Let's see your powers, eh?"

Tears welled up in the little girl's eyes. She continued to fight back but the grip kept getting tighter. She gave a soft whine and the man continued to laugh.

"Let her go, you brute!" Meg snapped but the man didn't hear her.

"Iliana!" Another man's voice called.

The man holding Iliana smiled but it didn't last long. His head left his body with a clean swipe. Iliana gave a light shriek as she dropped to the ground but she was quickly taken in by another man, wrapping her up in his arms. It took a moment for her to realize who it was but she did.

"Father!"

The man was practically a mountain! He was tall and had dark brown hair with a light beard. The light around the room illuminated the scar on his cheek; Meg recognized it as being on the opposite side of Atreus', the father of Megara's, face. It was the same man from Pegasus' new portrait. He was a little battered, an arrow sticking out of his arm, but he looked fine. His sword was dripping in blood.

"Iliana, where is your mother?!"

Iliana was gasping tears now. "Iliana!"

"Gone..." She finally gasped.

Her father gave a loud growl. "Father..." He was quick to grab his daughter's shoulders, silencing her words.

"Iliana, you need to run. Go!"

The little girl shook her head. Her tears still streaming down her face.

"I'm not leaving you, Father."

"You have to!"

Their conversation was interrupted with a battle cry and Iliana's father was forced to quickly slay the intruder. He went back to his daughter like nothing happened. "Iliana, please. Your mother nor I want to see you die. Run!"

"No! I won't leave you, Father!"

He gave an annoyed sigh that faded into nothing. Iliana's father looked back to his daughter. Tears were welling in his eyes now. He looked like he wanted to say something.

Before he got the chance, another arrow pierced him in the back. Meg gave a scream from the suddenness. He gave a grunt of pain. "Father!" The man didn't turn around, wrapping his daughter in his arms protectively instead. He gave another grunt of pain when another arrow hit him.

"Well well, Adrastus." A chuckling voice entered the room now. "I never expected you to cherish a daughter over a son. It's almost laughable."

No one could see who was talking. This was Christine/Iliana's memory, she must not have seen his face.

Iliana's father gave another growl.

"What would you know?" He growled. "You are the type of man who would kill wife and daughter if you could. You already drove one wife to her death, what's to stop you from doing it again?"

"Hmph."

A sword came down then, impaling Iliana's father. This time, he gave a gasp of pain. His grip must have loosened enough for someone to grab Iliana once more.

"Father!" She screamed as she was pulled away.

In a scream that shook Meg, Yugi and the Pharaoh, Iliana's father shot up despite his wounds and charged towards the man who held his daughter. Two or three men tried to get in his way but they were quickly cut down by his large slash. He continued his charge until one of the men was able to slash at his legs, making him crumple to the ground.

The Pharaoh reacted to try and help him but his hand went right through the man. They really were just observers...

"I'm sorry it had to come to this, little brother." The man started again. "You should have seen our Father's face when he discovered that you had gone with that seer. Our Mother wept for days before dying. While you... you were here with your witch of a daughter."

Iliana gave a whimper, reaching for her father. The Pharaoh was horrified. This man was her uncle?

"If you were sorry, you wouldn't be doing it at all..." Her father gasped.

"I must for our family's honor."

The man stepped towards the captive Iliana, wrapping her in his own arms. The little girl tried to fight back but the grip on her was tight. "Do not fret, Brother. I will take good care of my little niece. Don't you worry about a thing. You just join your beloved 'wife' in the Underworld." Iliana's father gave another loud growl, trying to push himself off the ground.

Iliana fought against her uncle's grasp with all her might. She screamed for her father as a few more of the men circled around him. He was obscured from view and the glint of metal appeared over their heads. The last thing the three saw before the image faded was Iliana's father reaching out for his daughter.

_**TRIGGER WARNING ENDS HERE**_

Screaming erupted again when the image was gone and the three turned to see teenage Christine, wearing the clothes they last saw her, screaming as tears streamed down her face.

"Father!" She gasped through her tears. "Father!"

"'Stine!" Meg cried, racing over to her friend.

Christine shrunk away from Meg trying to grab her.

"No! Let go of me!" Christine slapped Meg's hands away, backing up from where they were.

"'Stine! It's me! It's Meg!"

Christine only continued to scream and cry. She continued to back away when Meg tried to touch her, shaking her head wildly.

Yugi suddenly noticed images returning. He saw the lit candle from the beginning of vision and his heart sank.

"Other me!" He called. "It's starting again!"

The Pharaoh cursed. She has been trapped in this memory all this time? The image of his girlfriend/wife in hysterics burned itself into his memories.

He ran up to her this time - Meg jumping out of the way - grabbing her arms like her father had.

"Christine!" He snapped.

"No!" Christine shrieked again.

She tried to pull out of his grasp but the king held firm. He prayed he didn't leave any bruises. He gave a sigh before snapping a different name.

"Mereret!"

The screams stopped immediately. Her eyes snapped open wide, staring almost right through the Pharaoh, before they focused on him. She blinked a few times, stray tears falling down her face. She never looked away from him.

"Y-yami?" She whimpered.

The light shadows of the vision had vanished so the small group knew that Christine was finally awake.

"Yeah." The Pharaoh replied with a soft smile, loosening his death grip on her shoulders. "It's me. It's ok now. You're safe."

She still didn't do anything. Christine remained a statue in his grip. The girl stared at him, still blinking tears away, until everything fell apart. She gave a loud sob and immediately wrapped her arms around the Pharaoh's neck. The Pharaoh wrapped his own around her waist so that Christine wouldn't collapse.

Christine sobbed loudly into his shoulder. Her frame shook with each sob but the Pharaoh kept her upright. Meg and Yugi stayed to the side, their eyes sad at their friend's tears. With a hand sliding through her hair, the Pharaoh attempted to comfort her with gentle words and the tug of his fingers through her blonde locks that she loved.

Christine:

I wasn't embarrassed at crying into my boyfriend's shoulder. I wasn't embarrassed at being seen crying by Meg or Yugi.

I was only relieved to be out of that nightmare.

Yami's words in my ear and fingers through my hair helped slow down the tears until only small hiccups escaped me. I cried for a minute longer before I was able to pull away. Yami wiped away one of my tears with his thumb, giving a soft smile. I tried to give one back but I don't think it reached my lips at all.

"'Stine?" Meg's voice reached my ears.

I turned to look at her and Yugi. They both looked so nervous just standing there. I tried to give another smile.

"Meggie..." I said, a distinct shake to my voice.

Meg immediately came over to wrap me in a hug. She was the one shaking now but we managed to keep each other standing. I heard Yami step away and over to Yugi.

"I'm glad you're ok."

I tightened my grip around my friend.

"Thanks for coming to get me."

It took another minute but Meg finally released me. I looked over to Yugi. He didn't run over but he offered a hug. I actually smiled this time and took it. His was the shortest but the comfort was there all the same.

"How many times did that thing repeat on you, 'stine?"

I shrugged.

"Maybe six or seven times. I lost count."

Meg gave a loud growl. Her fists were clenched and her face in a dark scowl.

"I'm seriously going to kill that crone!"

I pulled away from Yugi to settle a hand on Meg's shoulder. She relaxed but the glare remained.

"It's fine. Once the rest of this circle finds out the truth, they won't follow her anymore. Any trust that was there would be mangled from the outcry against her."

Meg gave a heaving sigh.

"I hope you're right."

I hoped I was too.

The three helped me out of the area we were standing in and back into my room of the mind. Yami's hand at my back reminded me of Duelist Kingdom where he did the same thing after Mokuba. It helped ground me. The room was warm. I couldn't help but smile; I was happy to be out of the nightmare.

"So this is what it actually looks like." Yugi breathed.

I looked to see that the room of my mind wasn't any different than the last time I had seen it. The birds were being more cleanly than usual but...

"What happened to it?" I asked.

"Remember the ooze guy from the Power Rangers movie?" Meg asked.

I nodded, slightly confused as to why she was bringing it up. "Lots of black ooze everywhere. It was gross."

"Oh... Ok..."

I tried to see what Meg was describing but my head didn't like it. God, it ached.

"You ok?" Yami asked, stepping closer to me when I moved a hand to my head.

"My head hurts."

"You're probably dehydrated." Yugi replied.

"Probably."

CAW

The four of us jumped as a large collection of feathers shot right past us. Meg and Yugi ducked while Yami and I jumped out of the flight path.

"Good grief!" Meg shouted. "What the heck was that?"

I looked up to see the large bird coming back for another go. Wait... I pulled away from Yami and held out my arm. The large bird, actually being the falcon that lived in my mind, immediately flew over and perched itself on my outstretched arm. I didn't feel pain from the sharp talons nor its weight. My three companions stared wide eyed as it chirped at me incessantly.

"Woah..." The Pharaoh breathed. "That's interesting."

"Agreed."

I lifted a finger and watched as the falcon carefully nibbled on it. It made me smile when it also leaned it so that I was petting over its feathered head. The large bird warbled at me again when I pulled my finger away, almost chastising me for drinking the potion.

"Sorry..." I said to the bird. "Best idea I could come up with."

Another warble escaped its beak before it shot off again. It didn't try to dive bomb again, instead flying off towards the large tree in the center of my mind. I lost track of it amongst the foliage of the tree but I knew it was still watching me.

The floor underneath our feet began to rumble loudly. We all fought to keep our balance until it ended. I stared at the wide-eyed expressions of my friends. "What the heck was that?"

"The crone!" Meg hissed. "She's here!"

That was definitely not good. We exchanged one last look before we raced to the open door of my mind. There were a number of aftershocks but our dash was unable to be stopped. When we reached the door, my feet tangled underneath me. I would have gone down had Yami not caught me at the last second. I quickly thanked him but gave him no time to settle me. He had to wrap an arm around my waist as we exited my mind. Jounouchi's sudden shouting hurt my ears.

"There is no way we're letting you get through here!" Jounouchi barked. "Hell no!"

"I don't think you all have much of a choice." A whispered voice, probably the crone's, echoed from across the way.

Through the gaps in my friends, I could see the crone's robes dragging along the ground behind her as she walked. I could also see someone else's clothes but I couldn't see the person wearing them.

Neyla caught sight of me and gave a bright smile. She turned towards the crone with it.

"You're too late, crone." Neyla near laughed. "Christine has already woken up."

The crone gave a huff of sound. All of my friends looked back to see me being held up by Yami.

"Christine!" Ryuji and Anzu cried.

"Heck yeah!" Honda cheered.

I was quickly surrounded by my friends, allowing them to hug me tightly. I was happy to have their holds ground me further. My nerves were still shot. They pulled me so that I was easily visible to the crone and I saw the old woman's face contort in rage.

"Well well…" She drawled. "The Imitator has actually woken from the effects of my potion."

Imitator… I gave a growl back.

"I'm not imitating anything!" I snapped. "What would I have to imitate?!"

The crone scoffed at my snap.

"You truly believe that you are the Great Queen? A stupid little girl like you could never be her."

I heard Yami growl behind me. I reached behind me to take his wrist. He knew the sign to calm down but I could still feel his anger in droves. "The true Iliana has returned to the circle and we will once more be brought out into the light. No longer will we be confined in the shadows!"

"But through the use of fear and manipulation? No circle wants that!"

"But that is what the circle needs." A new voice next to the crone said.

A woman with shoulder length black hair walked out of the shadows, her blue eyes piercing the darkness around her. She was wearing the dark robes of someone in a high position in the circle, much like the crone's. I gasped at the harsh grip she had on Daisuke's hair as she dragged him in. She didn't seem all that upset at the pained gasps he released.

"Transfer!" Meg called.

Daisuke couldn't look over to us as the grip must have been too tight. "Let him go!"

"Why?"

She tightened the grip and Daisuke gave another gasp of pain. "Once we handle you, he will be the next to be punished." She gave a pointed look to Meg then. "The cursed one will simply be exterminated. No circle will ever have need of her." I gave a growl at that.

"So…" I huffed. "You're the one claiming to be Iliana."

"I don't need to claim. I am."

"Then prove it."

There were plenty of things she could have done: pointed out Yami as the King 'she' married, knew the importance of the Millennium Puzzle etc. But she simply lifted her free hand and conjured the symbol of Iliana made of water. It dripped but she managed to make it keep its shape. It must have been extremely convincing to a desperate circle.

"It is as simple as that." The woman said with a smile.

"Simple? Hardly!"

The woman's eyebrow ticked in annoyance. "Iliana would never rule out of fear and manipulation. Plus, she would never remove someone from her circle simply because of an accident. The only reason the circle started doing that was because people got too close in discovering us. A bias that should be eliminated as soon as possible!"

"It is a bias that has protected our people." The crone huffed. "Ms. Peters is a danger to herself and others."

"No! Meg isn't a danger! Simply seeing it doesn't mean she can control who or what she sees. She's tormented by it! I should know!"

Meg flinched back but I took her hand before she shrank back into the crowd. "Meg is a far better witch than either of you, even though her true powers were denied because of something she couldn't control!" The crone's frown deepened further.

"You should know your place, girl." The crone hissed.

"My place? My place will always be against people like you!"

I glanced at the woman then. "How did you even get enough influence to assume this position?"

"She's a big bully, that's how!" A new voice called out.

We all turned our heads and I recognized the pink summer dress that I adored as a six-year-old. The mini me was standing at the edge of our little space, arms crossed over her chest. "A bully who didn't get enough attention as a kid and now is lying to get everything she ever wanted. But it's all a big lie!"

"Quiet, brat!" The woman shouted at little me.

"No! I won't!"

The woman gave a loud growl. Little me simply gave a victorious smile because she didn't try to retort again.

"Damn…" Meg breathed. "She's getting beaten up by a six-year-old."

I continued to stare at little me. Her confident smile was what surprised me. Was I like that as a kid?

Another growl from the woman made my gaze shoot back to her. She swung her hand towards little me and large gashes of water shot towards my memory.

"No!" I cried.

There was a flash and the water immediately began to freeze into icicles. The woman and crone gasped at the appearance, moving out of the way of getting impaled. There was another gasp and we were amazed at the sight of Daisuke running towards us. He gasped for air, clutching at his head.

"That was insanity!" He gasped. "What the heck was that?!"

No one had an answer until little me gave a loud pout.

"Took you long enough." She huffed at someone behind the icicles.

"I'm sorry." A familiar voice cooed back. "I wanted to give you your moment."

Little me huffed again and the icicles dissipated. Standing in front of little me was Iliana. She wore a confident smile, staring down the woman and the crone. The two stared back wide eyed. Iliana eventually gave a sigh. "To think, this is how far my circle has fallen. It's sad."

"Fallen?" The crone growled. "Who are you to derogate the circles?!"

"The woman who started it."

The crone's eyes widened. "It began with five children, orphaned and abandoned in the desert. I took them in, raised them like my own. If one of them came to me for help, I didn't hesitate to give it. Can you say the same for those under your care?" The crone flinched back. "And you…" Iliana turned to the woman then. "Cheating and lying to get what you want…. It makes me long for the long and boring court days. I wonder what my old colleagues would have done with you…"

Iliana snapped her fingers. Tendrils of ice began to grow up the two women's legs. The more they fought, the faster it grew. I stepped in once it got to their knees.

"No…" I breathed.

Iliana nodded immediately, waving her hand to send the ice away. The two looked over to Iliana, eyes wide in almost fear.

"You are lucky I have become so merciful. If I had my way, you two would be nothing but dust by now."

"Isn't that a little much?" Little me asked gently from behind Iliana.

"Maybe." Iliana gave a gentle shrug. "It sure wouldn't equate to their crimes…."

Iliana gave another shrug. "I guess I will simply give them to the proper authority. I don't do that and Christine will be very angry with me."

"Ya got that right!"

Little me giggled in my direction, making Meg burst into laughter. I simply rolled my eyes at the conversation. Iliana gave a gentle smile before waving her hand again. The woman and the crone vanished into the ground and everything went silent.

"That should do it."

Shouts and cries of celebration echoed in my ears then. Jounouchi and Honda were dancing madly, making Anzu and Ryuji roll their eyes. Yami and Yugi's gaze were on me and Iliana. Little me eventually came running over and wrenched Yami into a tight hug. The spirit lifted her to his hip and she playfully stuck her tongue out at me.

I eventually caught sight of Iliana standing in my room of the mind. She seemed to be waiting for something so I snuck out of my group of friends and into my room of the mind. I approached her just as the falcon settled onto her arm. She played with the feathers for a moment before she spoke. "It's so hard to believe that nothing has changed in here."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

Iliana brushed over the falcon's feathers again.

"Every little bit of this place is the exact same as before. All the way to the tree."

She looked then to the large tree, my gaze following hers. "Do you know what type of tree it is, Christine?"

"A… sycamore, I think."

"It is. Do you remember which goddess the sycamore was sacred to?"

"Hathor."

Iliana nodded her head.

"The mother goddess. The Lady of the Sycamore. A tree that can grow in so many different environments like Greece and even in Egypt. An adaptability that only needs a bit of nurturing to grow. Much like you."

I turned my head to see Iliana looking towards me. "You only needed small nudges to get onto your path and you're there. You no longer need any help." I didn't like the way she said that. My body turned so that I could face her head on.

"What does that mean? Are you leaving?"

"You don't need me anymore."

"I do though! There's so much I don't understand yet!"

Iliana's free hand reached for my cheek. She slid her thumb across the skin, a smile racing across her face.

"You were able to overcome the memory that haunted your nightmares even to the day you vanished. While it may have been with help, you still were able to break free of it. That was something I was never able to do."

She pulled away from my cheek and I saw it began to fade away. The falcon on her other arm squawked loudly at her. She turned her gaze to the bird. "I'm sorry, old friend. It's time for me to go." The bird gave a warble. "I know. I will never forget you, my friend." The falcon shot off into the tree once more, vanishing into the foliage. Iliana gave a hum before turning back to me. "Oh, and before I forget. One last little memory for the road."

Iliana tapped at my forehead and a memory hit me. Little me was tied to a post, tears streaming down my cheeks. It was after the events of the nightmare; I knew that from the similar bruises on my arms. There were quick steps into the clearing where I was a small bronze vessel with water appeared before my vision. I looked up to see… Daisuke? It was his face but it was far younger, he looked to be about 11. I went to say something but the older boy shushed me.

"I'm not supposed to be doing this." The boy whispered. "But… even after everything, I am still your family and I will not let my father treat you like this."

Little me didn't argue with his words and accepted the water. He also made sure to carefully feed me anything that he had managed to snatch from under his father's nose at their 'victory' feast. From the snippets after, Daisuke played loyal son during the day then my protector at night. They cut off suddenly and I was left blinking.

"It was sad to see him reduced to being like Uncle. I am happy he has returned to how he was."

The words brought even more memories to my mind. I remembered Father being lost in the past, muttering about how his brother, my uncle, kidnapped and 'married' a woman who killed herself when her 'husband' wasn't looking and in front of my father. He may have never known that that woman had given birth to a son who would protect me when he was gone.

"To think he'd show up again." I breathed.

"Fate loves to do it; putting familiar faces on our path, knowing that we may never recognize them. And in the event that we do, they are changed from the lack of who they were."

That could've been taken many different ways. I didn't have time to think through them all as she was fading even faster now. There was nothing I could do.

"Don't you want to say anything to Yami?" My voice cracked as I spoke.

Iliana gave a gentle shake of her head.

"There is nothing I could say that you can't say for me."

I wiped away a tear, hearing Iliana give another hum. "Take care of him." I nodded my head and watched myself fade away into a flash of golden sparks. Nothing remained of her, not even spots where her feet were in the grass. I had to wipe away more tears at the silence.

She was gone…

A gentle hand took my own but I didn't need to turn my head in order to see who it was. I tightened the grip, letting it ground me.

"Are you going to be ok?" Yami asked, voice soft in my ear.

It took me a couple of seconds to reply but I eventually nodded my head.

"Yeah." I breathed. "I'll be ok."

Yami didn't say anything to refute my answer, only tightening his own grip on my hand. "Let's get out of here. I've had a long day."

"I believe it."

Hand and hand, Yami and I walked out of my room of the mind then out of my mind in general once we gathered the rest of the gang.

I no longer needed to stare directly at my past. I would remember it but I also remembered that there was a future that I needed to strive for.

The next day was spent resting. I was severely dehydrated from the near day without liquids and was nearly admitted to a hospital. Luckily, the circle nurses were able to set me right. The woman and the crone had been locked away; Iliana's spell ensuring that their every crime was known and their victims would be allowed justice. I also learned that Meg went on a little hunt for how they found me; apparently one of the teens in front of the circle we had passed that morning could read minds and had seen the memories running through my head. It made all of my traps and other pieces to protect myself seem silly. I didn't know if I wanted to let Daisuke know about what I learned from my past but my worries were nullified when, as we were leaving, he teasingly called out 'See ya, cuz!' I rolled my eyes, silently wondering how he found out about it. I simply gave him the mortal middle finger and smiled as he burst into laughter. I was sent back to Meg's place nearly an hour after waking up where I was sent back to bed to rest up. We still had Kaiba's tournament to worry about so the gang wanted to be sure that I was perfectly healthy to make the trek.

I may have been healthy the morning we caught the bus to wherever Kaiba was taking us but I was thoroughly exhausted. Meg had done some digging and discovered something that made both of us smile like idiots. We ended up staying up most of the night to create the ultimate masterpieces. Neither of us were really upset when Yami caught us still awake at three in the morning when he decided to take a walk around the house. He may have griped at us but Meg and I hardly cared.

Just before we all climbed onto the bus, the gang and I made sure to give Meg tight hugs.

"Don't forget about me, ya crazies!" Meg chastised.

"How could we forget about you?" Jounouchi cheered loudly. "You're part of the gang!"

Meg glanced over to me and from her expression, she didn't know whether or not it was a good thing to be part of the gang. Considering who her favorite character was…. I gave a gasping laugh, slapping my knee in hilarity.

My hug came last. Meg's embrace was like a snake's, tight and extremely constricting. It was hard to breathe. My concern was that she didn't let go.

"Meggie…" I breathed. "Ya gotta let go."

"I require payment, 'stine." Meg whispered.

"Payment?"

"Yeah. It's nothing much, merely a trifle! What I want from you is…."

Meg lowered her voice even more. "You find the boy…"

"The boy?"

"Yes, my boy. You find my boy and you take a picture of him."

"I take a picture of your boy? Do I send it to you?"

"Yes! And make sure he is fly as shit in it!"

I gave a laugh, nodding my head.

"It shall be done!"

"Good!"

We both giggled brightly before we both faded into tears. "Don't you dare forget about me…"

"Never…"

The two of us cried for a little while before we had to pull apart. She waited at the end of the bus stop as we pulled away. I watched her waving form for as long as I could before it faded away. I was reduced to tears again. Yami was quick to come out and comfort me, leaving me a sniffing mess in his arms. I eventually became numb and settled to fall asleep.

I woke up once we reached the hotel. Yugi had been given back control and he helped lead me up to our given room. I was surprised to see Rebecca and her grandfather in the large room. I hadn't seen them since after Duelist Kingdom. Rebecca had changed so much; an over-intelligent aura instead of the teddy bear that she had back then. The old man tried to give me a smile but I was still numb from today. We divvied up the rooms amongst ourselves and Yami was insistent that I shared a room with him and Yugi. No one argued and the king was quick to grab my bag and wrist to pull me into a room.

Yami pressed a kiss to my forehead before he gave Yugi control again. I was told to rest, making me smile and nod my head. I didn't climb into bed just yet. There was a computer in the room Yami had commandeered so I took the moment to check emails. Grandpa sent an extremely vague one saying that he would be away from the shop for a week and that Yugi's mom was taking care of it. It was confusing but I didn't argue with him. There was a new email from… Meg? I quickly clicked it open.

It was filled to the brim with photo attachments. I clicked them open and smiled. They were all of me and Meg from over the years. Meg and me at the cons, us at diners drinking large milkshakes, us wearing our ridiculous sweater dresses about our spirit animals. She even made sure to send the embarrassing one of us in the Play-boy bunny outfits that she forced us to wear after she was in Legally Blonde two years ago. Tears may have streamed down my cheeks again but this time, they weren't the cold unhappy ones from earlier.

I would see my best friend again.

**I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! **

**Bakura: Why would you do that?**

**Do what?**

**Bakura: You know. **

***Blinks* I am a firm believer in advice given by Varric Tethras. If you love a character, you make them suffer. **

**Bakura: You are so cruel. **

**And you're not?!**


	5. And Here We Go Again

**Welcome to the Kaiba Corp Grand Championship! This is actually one of my favorite arcs in the anime so I knew I had to add this into my story somewhere. There are so many funny moments to let Christine be the biggest sass master she can. **

***I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! I only own Christine, my OC. If you recognize anything, I don't own it either.***

I did not want to get up the next day. I was regretting staying up all night with Meg.

Jounouchi barked around the large hotel room, doing his utmost to wake everyone up as noisily as possible. Thankfully, Yugi remained quiet, tip toeing around our shared room to avoid waking me. I was already awake but I appreciated Yugi's kindness. When Jounouchi finally banged on our door, I opened my eyes and glared at the sheet of wood. If Jounouchi weren't mortal… Yugi groaned at that moment as well.

"I understand he's excited but…" Yugi groaned again.

"It's ok, Yugi." I hummed, going to sit up and rubbing my eyes.

"You still need rest though!"

I smiled at him as I turned to climb out of bed. "You also didn't help it since you and Meg stayed up more than half the night doing whatever you were doing!" So Yami did tell him about that… I gave an embarrassed chuckle as I walked towards the bathroom.

"I feel so chastised… Whatever did I do to deserve this from one of my bestest friends?"

Yugi scoffed and it made me laugh. "But really, Yugi. I'm just tired." Yugi's amethyst eyes seemed to look through me but I smiled at him. "I'm pretty sure Kaiba won't torture us before the tournament even starts as much as he probably would like to." That finally made Yugi laugh. "Now scram! Let me get dressed."

I turned around to walk towards the bathroom again before seeing him leave but stopped short when a shiver shot down my spine and hands took my shoulders gently. The kiss at my cheek gave the identity away.

"I'm glad you're feeling better." Yami hummed in my ear.

My smile turned stupid at the sound. I pulled away from his grip but stayed to wrap my boyfriend up in a tight hug. The Millennium Puzzle dug into my side but I didn't let it bother me.

"Thank you again for coming after me, not that I doubted you wouldn't."

Yami hummed contentedly. I pulled away after a long moment and playfully tapped his shoulder. "Now scram! I wanna get dressed in a reasonable time frame." Yami chuckled but did turn to leave, ensuring I was alone to get dressed for the day.

With the California heat, I settled for a comfortable tank top with a thin blouse on top with a pair of black mid-calf leggings Meg obviously stuck in my bag when I wasn't looking. For shoes, I opted for ballet flats that I had bought in Domino. I'd never been to California before so I wasn't entirely sure what to wear at all. Once I was dressed, I quickly washed my face, pulled my hair back into a loose braid to keep it off my neck, then walked out of the room to convene with the gang.

The first thing I see is Anzu glaring daggers at Rebecca, who was clutching onto Yugi's arm like a python. Yugi's expression was unconcerned but he did look a tad uncomfortable with Rebecca being so close. I couldn't help but laugh to which he attempted a glare in return. I smiled back, if only to tease him.

"You're not concerned about that?" Anzu whispered, hopping over to have my ear. "I mean…"

I turned to her and lifted a finger to my lips. It kept Anzu quiet.

"She doesn't know about him nor am I telling her. It's fine."

Anzu gave a soft huff but did nod her head. Rebecca was all over Yugi, not Yami. If anything shifted, Rebecca would be hearing from me.

"Ah!" Professor Hawkins called from the adjoining dining room. "Good Morning, Christine!"

I gave one last comforting smile to Anzu before stepping around Yugi and Rebecca to the table.

"Good morning, Professor. It's been a while, huh?"

"Indeed it has! I do hope you're feeling better today; you looked so…"

The older man fought to say the right word but I smiled at him, stopping his words.

"I'm better today. Thank you for the concern."

Professor Hawkins smiled at me again before turning back to the kitchen and his making of breakfast. "Here, let me help." I took over the making of the eggs while he finished the toast. We worked in silence for a long moment before the Professor spoke again.

"Christine?"

"Hmm?"

"May I ask you a question?"

I turned my head to the older man. The movement ensured he asked his question. "Your friends explained a little about what had happened before you arrived here. About how you are the Great Royal Wife to the Nameless Pharaoh." I couldn't help but be nervous with the sentence.

"Yes?"

"Do you remember anything about the carvings of monsters from your previous life? I have a theory based on them and their placement in temples and other holy places."

"I believe Pegasus has mentioned to me that he based some of the cards off of the sculptures, though he only mentioned the God Cards specifically."

"Though what was the context of the carvings near 3000 years ago? My theory is that the ancients actually played a version of Duel Monsters, albeit with different rules of course."

That was indirectly mentioning the Shadow Games but he didn't want to mention them out loud. "With your memories, perhaps…" I finally shook my head.

"My memories at the moment are more… personal… rather than more court proceedings, if that is even the case."

I turned back to the eggs. The echoes of the nightmare flicked through my head for a second before I pushed it away; I didn't want to fall back into that. "Playing as a child, learning how to read and write hieroglyphics, clutching onto him when I was afraid…" I trailed off from there as Honda quickly stepped through the kitchen to get to the gang. Once he was gone, I spoke even softer than before. "I'm sorry I can't be more help."

"No, dear. It is no trouble at all. I apologize for making you remember painful memories."

I didn't want to burden him with my painful memories so I smiled at the Professor gently.

"None of them are painful, Professor. The memories I have of Egypt right now are very close to my heart; I like remembering them."

If the eggs stayed on the pan any longer, they would burn. "We should finish breakfast before Jounouchi starts to explode from hunger." The Professor acquiesced easily, not fighting me from changing the subject.

We all ate quickly before Mokuba came to collect us. He had grown in the short time we hadn't seen him. I was the only one he wrapped up in a tight hug, asking if I felt ok. How did Mokuba find out about that? I only smiled at him, saying I felt well. The younger Kaiba then practically dragged us out the door, leaving the Professor to relax his day away.

We entered a large gate and Mokuba gestured wildly to the park in front of him.

"Ladies and Gents!" Mokuba proclaimed. "Welcome to Kaiba Land!"

"It's huge!" Jounouchi gawked at the size of the entrance.

The park stretched for as far as I could see. Anzu plucked a map and cozied up to me to look it over. It really was huge! Maybe just as big as Cedar Point when I went with Meg; maybe even bigger.

"We plan to open tons of these all around the world!"

"Looks like they've got every ride ever invented." Anzu mused from next to me.

"Oh, yeah!" Yugi cheered. "Though, I don't think I want to ride next to Christine…"

"It was one picture!" I huffed back at him. "And it was adorable! Are ya gonna blame me?!"

"You put it on your wall!"

"Because it was cute!"

People laughed at our 'argument' with Yugi giving me an annoyed expression while I smiled at him. The fun probably would have continued if Rebecca hadn't grabbed Yugi's arm again.

"I just hope they've got a Tunnel of Love, don't you?" Rebecca hummed.

The familiar annoyance from so long ago came rising out of whatever pit it hid in. Yugi may have looked uncomfortable but he didn't say anything to shake her off; probably just being polite. To keep my face calm, I took a deep breath and focused most of my annoyance into my fist. Anzu seemed to notice as well as she wrapped my own arm up in her own.

"Don't worry." She whispered. "If there is one, I got you."

The annoyance faded into a bright blush.

"Thanks…" I whispered.

Anzu laughed at my bright blush and we continued after Mokuba.

We continued down the main entrance when Jounouchi finally set the mood.

"Before we get the full tour…" Jounouchi breathed. "I gotta use the little boys' room."

"First door on the left!" Mokuba pointed to the door he mentioned but I watched as Jounouchi didn't pay attention.

He continued walking straight until there was a 'Nyeh!' We all turned to see he had nearly walked into the Blue Eyes statue in the middle of the road. Anzu and I both laughed at his surprise.

"It's Blue Eyes!"

"That would be a statue." Honda corrected, leading to more cackling from me.

Once Jounouchi came back, we continued into the park. I was actually amazed to see Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl handing out balloons to children; I'm amazed Kaiba actually allowed that. Kids were everywhere: riding the rides and practically dragging their parents to see every single detail of the park.

"I thought you said the park didn't open yet." Anzu breathed.

"It didn't." Mokuba replied. "These are special guests."

Mokuba then turned around with a smile. "Oh, and did I mention every ride is free today?"

"You guys rock!" Honda cheered.

"I love this place!" Jounouchi cheered with him. "Let's Tilt N' Whirl until we hurl!"

"Yeah!"

Anzu sighed next to me.

"We need more female friends." Anzu sighed.

"Agreed." I sighed back. "Sadly, I think Meg would go with them."

"I thought you liked roller coasters."

"I do. I just hate tilting and whirling until I hurl."

Anzu nodded her head knowingly. I rolled my eyes at my excitable friends before following after Mokuba again, Anzu still on my arm.

"I saved the best part for last!" Mokuba cried once we got everyone moving again. "We call that the Kaiba Dome!"

It was literally a Blue Eyes head as the shape of the stadium. This was definitely Kaiba's park.

"Is that a Blue Eyes arena?!" Yugi gasped.

"We're not dealing with normal people here." Jounouchi breathed.

"No, we're not." Ryuji agreed.

"Agreed." I breathed as well.

We all climbed the steps up into the dome and I was amazed to see one of the largest stadiums I had ever seen.

"It's the world's largest indoor stadium!" Mokuba huffed, obviously filled with pride.

The younger Kaiba then dashed down the stairs towards the arena floor. We all followed a bit more carefully but made it soon after. "And that!" Mokuba pointed to the large almost old school duel platform. "Is the KC Dueltek 760!"

"Not too shabby." Jounouchi obviously reluctantly complimented.

"It's our new state of the art Duel Monsters platform."

There was a duel going on right now and all of our eyes flicked over to it. Jounouchi was sure to make known the rookie mistake the computer made with Mokuba saying to watch carefully. Sure enough, the computer had a plan with the face down card it had to summon the Five headed dragon I hadn't seen since after Duelist Kingdom inside Kaiba's virtual reality game. I flinched into Anzu at the sight and she wrapped an arm around my shoulder. Apparently, according to Mokuba, the computer had the cards and strategies of all the best duelists in the world, including Kaiba's and Yugi's. I couldn't laugh even as Jounouchi tried to beat up Honda when he commented that Jounouchi's deck was only there to ensure it lost once in a while.

"But what fun is it to duel against a computer that always wins?" Anzu asked.

"We thought about that. So we let players choose one of five levels from 'Beginner' all the way to 'Expert'.

It's a way of practicing. Even though Kaiba was a bit of a jerk, I didn't think he would torment kids like that. I smiled when Luke, the kid who was dueling, lost but was comforted and encouraged by the other kids.

Then came the cry of: "Hey! Isn't that Yugi Motou?!"

I saw Yugi flinch. Oh boy… Here it comes. Sure enough, a swarm of kids all came running up to Yugi. Rebecca continued to cling to him while Anzu and I stood nearby.

"Looks like someone's a celebrity." Anzu teased.

"Well…" Yugi replied shyly. "I wouldn't go that far."

"I can't believe it's you!" A tween boy with dark purple hair and sweet light brown eyes gasped when he got to the front of the crowd. "I've been a fan of yours since Duelist Kingdom!"

The boy reached a hand out politely to shake Yugi's. "By the way, I'm Leon!" Yugi was blushing at the praise but did accept the handshake.

"Heeey, anyone want my autograph?" Jounouchi was asking excitedly.

"Are we supposed to know you?" Another boy asked, eyebrow raised suspiciously.

I had to hold back a cackle at the expression that shifted Jounouchi's face. He tried to remind the boy of who he was but no such luck. Then a boy came rushing up to Yugi, deck in hand.

"Could you take a look at my deck, please?" The boy asked.

Yugi immediately finished the autograph he was signing and took the cards, sliding them through his fingers. "No matter what I do, I can't seem to win a duel."

"I see the problem." Jounouchi said as he leaned over to look as well. "All you've got are dragon cards!"

"Dragons are my favorite! I traded all my Spell and Traps for them."

"Sure, dragons are powerful but you'll never win with this deck." Rebecca added.

The slip in expression on the boy's face made me step over to the two interlopers and lean over threateningly. Jounouchi, of course, flinched while Rebecca paled slightly. He asked Yugi… why were these two interrupting?

"Why not?"

"Ah…" Rebecca seemed at a loss for words at the innocent question and at my threatening. "That came out wrong."

"Here's the deal…" Yugi finally spoke and I leaned away from the two interlopers. "It's obvious that you value your cards and that respect is gonna take you far. But you also need to balance your deck with Spell and Trap cards.

"I do?" The boy asked, obviously enraptured on what Yugi was saying.

Yugi nodded his head.

"Matter a'fact." He leaned over to pluck a card out of one of his holsters. "Take this card."

The boy stared at it for a second before speaking.

"You mean it?"

"Of course."

The boy finally took it and stared at the image on the card.

"Huh? Heart of the Underdog?"

"It reminds me of a good friend of mine and it could be just what you need."

"Ah… can I keep it?"

Yugi nodded his head and the boy's face shifted into the brightest smile yet.

A few more of the kids crowded over to look at the card. All awing over it or the fact that Yugi had given him it. Jounouchi, now freed from my threatening, popped over again.

"Who does that card remind you of anyway?" Jounouchi asked.

Yugi's face became a light pink and I had to hold back a cackle at it.

"I'll… tell ya later." Yugi hummed.

"I'm gonna test it out right now!" The boy dashed towards the duel platform.

"Good luck!"

"I wouldn't set the level too high if I were you!" Mokuba cried out.

"Good call!" The boy cried back.

I took the opportunity to sneak onto Yugi's shoulders as Rebecca had turned her attention to the boy starting up the computer.

"You are so sweet." I complimented. "That was excellent feedback."

"I'm glad I can reach your expectations." Yugi replied with a playful shrug.

I finally gave a laugh and teasingly tickled him. The boy laughed as well but didn't pull away. Just as my laughter faded, the lights went out. I gave a shriek of fright from the suddenness, tightening my grip on Yugi's shoulders.

"Looks like the Kaiba boys forgot to pay their electric bills." Jounouchi playfully teased, lifting the mood.

"Either that, or there are still some kinks in your system." Rebecca added, decidedly less teasingly.

"That's impossible!" Mokuba huffed at them.

He ran over to a plate that lifted off of the platform. "We worked out every possible bug!"

"Well, apparently ya didn't." Ryuji added unhelpfully.

I would have reprimanded him but I remained with Yugi, concerned with trying to walk around in the dark. "One bug must have slipped through the cracks."

Mokuba lifted a phone from the platform, calling for people to remain calm. Then the power came back on. Well, slightly. The only light came from the dueling platform as it turned on. People cheered for a second before the doors to the Kaiba dome slammed shut, their protective coverings covering them. The calm voice of the computer then shifted into a distorted one, one that sent shivers up my spine.

"It's not responding! I've lost control!"

Rebecca took control, pulling out the laptop that had apparently replaced her teddy bear, and determined that the computer was being controlled by someone outside and someone who wasn't a beginner at it. Jounouchi and Honda suggested destroying it but Ryuji soundly suggested that we'd never get out if they did that; the hacker may not have let us out either way.

The only way out was the boy beating the computer, which had adjusted itself to be on the highest difficultly.

"Christine, will you let go?" Yugi asked softly.

I did so immediately, knowing what he was doing. Yami took over swiftly, but didn't move just yet as he leaned back to speak to me.

"Handle things down here." He said gently.

"Got it." I replied.

I stepped over to Mokuba and Rebecca while he jumped up to assist the boy on the platform but soon saw my talents better suited to the now crying children littered across the stadium floor. I took over one section of the crowd all of them crying for their mothers and fathers. The act of simply comforting them brought so much nostalgia; I had done this numerous times before.

I didn't pay attention to much of the duel, keeping my eyes on the kids who couldn't help but watch in abject horror. If I saw a child in tears, I carefully stepped over to them and comforted them as best I could. There were lots of tears but once the lights came fully on, they faded immediately. "What did I tell ya?" I teasingly asked a boy who couldn't stop crying. "Think you can last anther minute till we get the doors open?" The boy burst into tears again, wrapping me up in a tight hug. I gave a humming laugh but returned the embrace.

Once the doors were open, all of the kids raced out and towards their parents. There were no goodbyes but I was ok.

"Well done down there."

I glanced over to see Yami smiling at me. I playfully bumped my hip against his in reply to which I received a chuckle.

"Well done yourself. You doing well made my job much easier."

Yami raised a teasing eyebrow back but was interrupted when the boy turned back to him.

"Thanks for the card, Yugi." He thanked. "I'll take real good care of it."

"Good." Yami replied.

"See ya!"

The boy dashed off, crying for his parents to tell them what happened. Then Jounouchi turned around… Yami flicked an eye at me when I had to hold back a laugh. I remembered what this was.

"Uh…" Jounouchi managed slowly. "about that underdog card, you said it reminded you of someone, right?"

"I did?" Yami answered, obviously confused, still flicking his eyes at me, still trying not to laugh. "Oh, yes… uhhh… A little help here."

The switch was quick but the blush on Yugi's face, even quicker.

"Oh, yeah!" Yugi snapped, turning slightly to look at the spirit form of his other self. "Well that's really mature, Other Me!"

"Well, Yuge?" Jounouchi stalked over to wrap up Yugi in a neck hold. "'Cause, everyone else over there seems to think that I remind you of this underdog?"

"They do, huh?"

Yugi looked over at me as if to ask for help but I was still trying not to laugh. This was one of my favorite scenes! "Well… lemme think of the best way to put this, Jounouchi. That card makes me think of you because even when the odds are against you, you always pull through!" Jounouchi actually looked surprised at the words. It faded when Honda spoke.

"I can see your business cards now!" Honda teased. "Katsuya Jounouchi: Executive Underdog!"

"Hey, watch it!" Jounouchi snapped back.

I finally let my laughter escape and to avoid falling down, I held onto Anzu. She simply rolled her eyes at me.

"Even after running around through your head, I still don't understand you." She mused.

The sounds of a helicopter then took over our ears. Guests of the park dashed to be out of the way of the quickly landing helicopter. Once it was safely on the ground, the door opened up to reveal Kaiba… in the white suit.

Damn… Meg would love that as a picture.

"Mokuba!" Kaiba called.

The younger Kaiba dashed down the steps and over to his brother.

"Hey, Seto!" Mokuba called back.

Kaiba jumped out of the helicopter and we all followed after.

"You're a bit late to save the day, don't'cha think?!" Jounouchi barked. "Yugi already did that! But since you're finally here, maybe you could fix that whacko computer of yours, Rich Boy!"

"Settle down, you Underdog." Kaiba deadpanned, leading to more cackles from me.

Anzu and Honda started to laugh as well. Jounouchi snapped his head to glare at them. "Listen. There's nothing wrong with that computer. It's the hacker who broke in that's the whacko."

"Who was it?" Mokuba asked.

"I don't know, Mokuba. There's a long list of suspects. As we've seen many times in the past, Kaiba Corporation has its share of enemies, so it doesn't really surprise me that someone's out to sabotage my new tournament. But mark my words, this punk will be found and punished!"

Kaiba then looked to Roland, who was standing nearby. "In the meantime, Roland, I want security tripled for the tournament registration tonight. We can't afford any more unexpected interruptions. The only attacks this week should be in the Kaiba Dome."

"Yes, sir." Roland replied. "Of course."

Roland then turned to start setting off to start his mission.

"And anyone who's late for registration will be disqualified."

Kaiba then looked down at his younger brother. "Mokuba, make sure that Jounouchi is late." Mokuba nodded of course as his brother walked away in the same direction as Roland, but with a smile as I started to laugh again. Leave it to Kaiba to give me the greatest laugh session in months.

"Hey!" Jounouchi had taken a second to digest what Kaiba but when he finally did, there was shouting. "Hold on! I know an insult when I hear one! Look at me when I'm yellin' at you!"

Mokuba took care of us for the rest of the day. We got to ride some rides, eat food, and do a little shopping before we had to go to a large building just outside the park where the tournament participants would be announced. Inside were people dressed to the nines in gowns and suits. I felt severely underdressed, especially in my leggings.

"Whoa…" Yugi breathed. "Who are all these people, Mokuba?"

"We're trying to make a big buzz about this," Mokuba answered, "so we invited every newspaper and TV network we could think of. Tell those reporters something and the whole world hears it!"

Of course, Jounouchi, Honda and Ryuji immediately step out in front of the cameras and act like dopes. I rolled my eyes at them and followed Rebecca and Anzu to the food table. Anzu and I took a few of the finger foods but not too many as we had had a hearty meal for dinner at the nice restaurant in the park.

"Chow time!" The younger girl cheered then was bowled over by a taller woman. "Whoa!"

"Hey, shrimp!" Another woman's voice huffed at her. "The Kiddie Park's closed!"

It was… oh, I knew her name. She was Chinese… She did Kung fu… She was annoying…. Vivian! That was it!

"Oh, is that right?! You wanna piece a' me?!

Wow, Rebecca's a little spitfire, huh? Anzu saved me the trouble of going over and interrupting the argument.

"Rebecca?" Anzu asked. "Something wrong?"

"Yeah, Anzu, her!"

Vivian gasped then dashed past the two girls… and over to Yugi. I felt my eye twitch in annoyance.

"Yugi Motou?" She asked breathlessly.

"Uh, yeah?" Yugi replied politely.

"I knew it!"

Vivian grabbed his hands and my arms crossed angrily over my chest. "I'd recognize that adorable spiky hair anywhere!"

"Uh, thanks."

"The name's Vivian Wong. But call me Viv."

My eye twitched again at her wink.

"Ah, hi, Viv."

I nearly stomped away to avoid making a fool of myself in front of all the cameras but my eyes caught Jounouchi, Honda and Ryuji all watching the sight as well. Their eyes were wide at Yugi being smothered by the older woman.

"Let go of him!" I faintly heard Rebecca snap at her.

"Listen, I know once the competition starts," Vivian continued, "you and I are gonna be archrivals, right?"

"Uhh…" Yugi tried to butt in but Vivian barreled on.

"But that doesn't mean we can't be buddies when we're off the playing field."

Yugi tried to speak again but Vivian wrapped him up in a tight hug. "You're a quiet one, aren't you?" I fought even harder to not freeze her to her spot.

"Hey, break it up!" Anzu huffed as she walked over to Vivian and the trapped Yugi.

"Yeah, you might wanna let him up for air, Viv." Rebecca huffed as well.

Vivian then caught sight of something else. She quickly released Yugi to cry out.

"Is that Seto Kaiba?!" Vivian gasped. "Yoo hoo! Kaiba Poo!"

Kaiba Poo? I couldn't focus on that as I was still gathering my breath from being unendingly angry.

"What was that about?" Anzu huffed.

"I don't know and I don't care." I hissed through my teeth.

Anzu gave me a knowing look, recognizing the one on my face from over a year ago. She then looked back to where Vivian had run off to. There was silence in our group for a long moment. It was broken when Yugi stepped over to me, a concerned expression on his face.

"You ok?" He asked hesitantly.

I took a calming breath, relaxing my arms to my sides. That was answer enough as he stepped closer to whisper something. "If it makes you feel better, he didn't look at her at all." I was immediately confused and curious. I flicked my eyes over to him, seeing him look innocent but that little mischievous glint in his amethyst eyes. What was he… Oh… Did he think I was jealous? Of Vivian? Ooohh… That wasn't exactly what my mind was on but… now that he mentioned it, maybe that was part of it…

"Then… what was he looking at?"

Yugi looked so happy then; his eyes lifted to look innocently at the ceiling. "Yugi… What was he…?"

"You. As well as commenting things I probably should not repeat… Oof!"

Yugi's head suddenly flew forward a bit. "He bopped me!" Yugi laughed then. "I'm being chastised. Feels like home…"

The laughter left me so fast I couldn't stop it. I couldn't help but imagine Yami's face a bright red as Yugi talked about what he was thinking about. His face lifted into a smile at my laughter and he laughed when I wrapped him into a hug.

"Thank you, Yugi. I feel a lot better now."

Yugi hummed happily before I released him. The boy stepped away just as the cameras panned to our direction so it looked like a friendly distance. Good timing, Yugi.

"Scuse me." A familiar voice chirped.

"Huh?" Yugi turned and his face lit up in surprise. "You're Leon, right? What are you doing here?"

"I'm in the KC Grand Championship too!"

"Wow, you're kidding me."

"It's true. In fact, it's been my dream to duel against you ever since Duelist Kingdom!"

"Well, ya never know. It could happen!"

I gave another smile, my face still hurting from laughing at Yami. I then remembered I still had to 'pay' Meg. Maybe Kaiba is nearby; Vivian said she saw him. While Yugi and Leon talked, I snuck off to look for the CEO.

I found him just as another man walked away from him. I only saw a pink, maybe a light maroon, suit and long pink hair. Who was… I shook my head. I didn't care.

"Hey, Kaiba?" I called before he could walk away and start the tournament.

The CEO looked over to me, an almost impassive look on his face. "May I have a picture, please?" He raised an eyebrow at me.

"Who are you sending it to?" He huffed in response.

"A friend who is a very big fan of you and what you do."

Kaiba seemed to think about it for a moment before sighing.

"Fine."

Before he could change his mind, I lifted the camera Meg had given me and snapped a quick photo, making sure it was nice enough to send my best friend. When it was, I smiled at the CEO.

"Thank you, Kaiba. Sorry to take your time."

I gave a very polite bow in thanks before skipping back over to Yugi and the rest of the gang. There were only a few minutes before the lights dimmed and Roland appeared on the small stage.

"May I have your attention, please?" Roland called into the microphone. "This day will go down in history. For today begins the most prestigious Duel Monsters Tournament ever to be organized! Welcome to the Kaiba Corp Grand Championship!"

"Let's strut our stuff!" Jounouchi's echoed in my ears as he stepped past me to head up to the stage with the rest of the competitors.

Yami quickly took over with a nod of his head but before he left, he pressed a kiss to my cheek. My face was quickly the color of a tomato. My boyfriend laughed at the reaction before doing it again and heading up to the stage. I didn't even have a chance to tease him for what Yugi had told me earlier. Why was he so good at making me blush?!

It probably didn't help that I liked him a lot.

I fought through the blush to look up at the competitors. There was a large collection of them, all of them so different from each other.

"We've circled the globe to bring you this all-star congregation of duelists.

First up… the new boy wonder of dueling, the prodigy who's yet to be defeated, the one, the only: Leapin' Leon Wilson!"

Wilson? Anzu looked over at me, bright smile on her face. I shrugged but I whispered to her that I'd claim him as part of my family. She laughed at the words before looking back to the competitors. "He's a mystery, wrapped in a riddle, wrapped in a bathrobe – Fortune Salim! And straight from the Wild West, please welcome the Lone Dealer – Shane Jordan! Next, it's the Siberian muscle – Sergei Ivanoff! And always clued into his opponents' strategies, it's the calm and collected super sleuth – Detective Paul McGregor! And of course, our very own wild child! Abe, the monkey man! He extracts points from his opponents with surgical precision – Dr. Richard Goat! Next, it's the Master of the Magic Cards, the always debonair – Balfry Ginger. Seeing isn't always believing, just ask the duel-illusionist – Totani Ialos! And the Thunder from Down Under, here to duel and plunder! Ethan Shark! He thinks, therefore he is, Jafar Shin! And don't be fooled by Vivian!"

"Hey, it's that girl..." Anzu breathed.

"This delicate flower packs quite a kick! And, of course, the youngest regional champ – Rebecca Hawkins!"

I saw the glare Rebecca sent over to Vivian and I smiled. Go get her, girl. "Next, it's Katsuya Jounouchi! Our overwhelming Underdog!" I laughed at Jounouchi's original pride at the words before realizing that it was another insult. "And hailing from parts unknown, the Masked Duelist – Apdnarg Uotum!"

That guy looks awfully familiar…. The way Yami was looking at him made the feeling even stronger. Yep, I knew this guy but just couldn't place it. "And our final challenger – the always stylish Zigfried Lloyd!" It was the man in the suit I saw. He tossed his white rose out into the crowd to the delight of many women. I shook my head at the sight of practically fainting women. "And our defending champion – Yugi Motou! Whoever wins this this 16-duelist elimination competition will go on to face Yugi for the international Duel Monsters Championship Crown! To ensure fair play, match pairings will be randomly chosen by our computer just before every duel."

So there's no chance to prepare for an opponent. It was like the bingo thing for the Battle City Finals. Hey, if it worked, it worked. "Once again, on behalf of the Kaiba Corporation, I'd like to wish you all the best of luck. You represent the top-ranked duelists from across the globe… but only one of you can be crowned the World Champion!"

And here we go again.

**I'm so excited to do this arc! **

**Bakura: I can't believe you threw the Pharaoh under the bus like that!**

**Why not? For how suave he is all the time, he deserves it!**

**Bakura: You're terrible...**

**I will take that as the 'Awe inspiring' kind of Terrible!**


	6. The Wrath of Grandpa! I mean Apdnarg!

**Hey, guys! Crazy situation the world is in right now, huh? Thankfully, my family and I are safe at the moment: my younger sister is home from college for the rest of the year (Though she is upset that she has to do school work even on the weekends.) and my older sister works in a very safe part of her hospital. My introverted self is dying at the moment because my extroverted mother keeps wanting to do family things... I need to hide! Hence! I give you this chapter! With all this time on my hands, I will work double duty to get these chapters out to you all so we can get to the Millennium World! I'm so excited!**

The tournament didn't start until nine inside the Kaiba Dome so I happily soaked in as much time as I could sleeping. The beds in the hotel room were so comfortable; I could spend an entire day in them and not care about the lost time.

Unfortunately, I was woken up.

It wasn't a shaking like what Jounouchi or Honda would do. It was simple pokes and calls of my name, that was it. I didn't want to wake up but my eyes opened anyway.

"Morning, Sleeping Beauty." Yami's voice appeared next to me.

I gave a gentle laugh at the nickname.

"Been a long time since I heard that name." I replied, my voice slightly scratchy from sleep.

Yami chuckled at the scratchiness of my voice, sliding a hand to pull some of my wayward hair out of my face. "Jounouchi already come pounding?"

"10 minutes ago."

I groaned, trying to hide my face in the pillow again. It only caused more laughter from Yami. "Come on, get up. Contestants have to be there at 8:30 to get into their positions without too much trouble and Yugi would like to not be barraged with fans." I gave another groan but did reluctantly sit up, rubbing my eyes.

"I'm up, I'm up."

"Very much reluctantly."

I bopped him over the head but was given a chuckle in response. "I'll get out of your way so you can get dressed." He turned away to leave the room but I wanted just another second with him.

"Yami?"

My boyfriend turned back around just as I climbed out of bed and wrapped him up in a tight hug. He returned my embrace, sliding a hand through my hair. I think he understood my need for affection so he indulged me. After a moment, he pulled away to press a kiss to my forehead. I playfully looked sad still and Yami sighed, the hint of fondness at the end.

"Ok ok."

I was given a quick kiss on the lips before he squirreled away. I didn't shout after him, smiling happily that I actually got my way. Very much awake and happy, I skipped to the bathroom to get the day started. Keeping to a similar outfit as yesterday, I quickly got ready and dashed to get something to eat before it was all gone.

It was a quick walk to the Kaiba Dome where Jounouchi, Rebecca and all the other competitors were settled on the dueling platform. The rest of us, including Professor Hawkins, were seated in the front rows of seats on the arena floor. I was amazed how many people could fill the seats of the dome and continued to be so even when there were no open seats anywhere. I didn't realize it was so loud until the roof came lifting off. I could barely hear the roller coasters that were the closest to us.

"Ladies and Gentlemen!" Roland's voice appeared through the sound system. "Duelists of all ages! Kaiba Corp is proud to present the KC Grand Championship Tournament!"

The crowd cheered loudly at the words, leaving me only just barely hearing Roland's next words: the same spiel about duelists from around the world and one of them possibly becoming world champ. Though, Jounouchi seemed extremely excited about them.

"Can you believe this crowd?!" Yugi's gasp hit my ears clearly despite the noise.

"It's huge!" Anzu agreed.

I was then poked by Ryuji, who looked half to tears from holding back laughter.

"Look!" Ryuji managed. "Jounouchi's trying to scare the competition with his weird chicken dance!"

I looked and sure enough, there it was. The competitors didn't look too affected by it, only confused by what he was doing. Ryuji and I only needed to look at each other again before bursting into laughter. Oh, Jounouchi.

"I need some more female friends."

"Am I not enough for you?" I teasingly asked.

"You sometimes condone their actions."

There was no arguing that. I laughed slightly at the words, lifting my eyes innocently, before turning back to the dueling platform. I was sad to miss Anzu whacking Honda over the head for making a fool of himself.

"And now…" Roland's voice appeared again. "Make some noise for our Master of Ceremonies!"

Out of the center of the platform, a new section started to lift up with Mokuba standing on it. With the smoke and lights, I was nearly fooled that a boy band would start to perform out of nowhere. I giggled at the thought.

"Do they always have to be so dramatic?" I heard Honda grumble and giggled some more.

"So are you people ready to get your duel on?!" Mokuba cried into the microphone.

There were cheers but Mokuba cried into his device again. "I can't hear you! I said are you people ready to see some dueling or what?!" That created more cheers. "Good! 'Cause it's time to kick off the greatest Duel Monsters tournament ever organized! And before the week is through, we may have a new International Duel Monsters Champion! So give it up for the current Title Holder: Yugi Motou!" I only just noticed the cameras approaching us so I gave Yugi a poke, making him turn around. He blushed brightly at the sight of the camera then his face appearing on the large screens around the arena. "Give a shout out to your fans, Yugi!"

The poor boy was so flabbergasted, he didn't know what to do. I felt bad for laughing but I couldn't help it. "All right, maybe later!" I cackled at that. I was quickly elbowed in the side by Yugi once the camera moved away.

"I'm sorry!" I whined, hugging him.

"You say that…" He huffed back.

I released him after a tight squeeze just as Mokuba continued to speak.

"So now, direct your attention to the Kaibatron!" The younger Kaiba announced.

All right, first round. They would start Block A with Jounouchi – who seemed thrilled with the news – and the mystery duelist – Apdnarg, who I was still pretty sure I knew.

I was elbowed again and I looked down at Yugi. He looked… I couldn't place his expression.

"You know who that is, right?" He asked softly.

"I have the sneaking suspicion that I do but…. Wait…"

I thought about it for a second – looking at his 'name' in the small program that Kaiba's suits had given us and gasped – how was I so stupid?! 'Apdnarg' spelled backwards was… "Is that…?" Yugi nodded. "He tried to trick me!" I growled up to the masked duelist - actually Grandpa Motou wrapped up in his bandana like a mask. "I'll get you for this!" Both Yugi and I sighed; hopefully Jounouchi would realize it as well.

For block B, Leon would face Richard Goat, the doctor duelist. As a fellow Wilson, I cheered loudly for him along with Anzu, leading to a bright blush on the boy's face.

I actively held back my laughter when Yugi was called up yet again. He looked to me for help but I shrugged; what could I do? My only suggestion was running away but that was out of the question. Obviously Yami wasn't going to help him so he nervously went up himself. I kept a sort of confident smile on my face for his sake but I was pretty sure it wasn't going to help.

Ironically enough, he was rescued by a suited Kaiba dramatically leaping from his now Blue Eyes jet and using a jetpack to land next to his brother.

If only I had a video camera. Meg would have loved this!

Mokuba handed Kaiba the microphone, ensuring Yugi didn't have to say anything.

"All right…" Kaiba barked into the microphone. "I'm gonna make this brief. This is not a show. It's the ultimate test of survival, and it will push everyone involved to their limits. If you came for a friendly game, then I'd suggest you go home. This is a ruthless battle! And in the end, only one duelist will remain standing! Now, if everyone's clear, let's move on! From this moment forward, Kaiba Land is a battlefield! So trust no one! And may the best duelist win!"

The crowd loved him. No pressure there, eh, Kaiba? He was obviously hamming it up for the crowd or just spouting more of his 'trust no one' philosophy. As cool of a character Kaiba was, that was going to eventually get old.

The Kaiba brothers pulled away from the dueling platform and Roland took the stage.

"Duelists and spectators!" He called. "Let the first round of the KC Grand Championship begin! All tournament matches will be held on Kaiba Land grounds, but only the two remaining finalists will be invited back to duel right here in the Kaiba Dome!

Match One will take place in our Amazon Adventure Trail! And Match Two will be held beneath the Dragon's Lair Flume! Now, competitors, please report to you designated locations."

"It's Leon!" Yugi quickly gasped, pointing to the screen with the second location.

He had made it there quickly though he did look a little worried. He'd be fine, I told myself, don't worry. The other screen had the Masked Grandpa standing alone at his site. The one thing I did have to worry about was Jounouchi and how he wasn't at his location. He was located when Yugi cried out his name. "Jounouchi! What are you doing here?!"

"Eh? Hey!" Jounouchi answered like he it was the most natural thing in the world. "There's a two for one sale on weinies!"

Really?! He was eating?! Mokuba seemed just as horrified when he came rushing over along with us.

"You should be on the Amazon Adventure Trail!" Mokuba snapped at him.

"Guess again, pal! Jounouchi doesn't duel on an empty stomach! I gotta bulk up for my first match!"

Mokuba groaned in frustration.

"Wake up! Your first match has already started!"

"Huh?!"

I sighed at the surprise on his face. What was he thinking?

"And if you don't get your butt over to that dueling site in the next 10 minutes, then you'll be disqualified!"

"Ahh! You wouldn't!"

Jounouchi's face then lifted to an almost smug one. Oh boy. "Hold on. 10 minutes is a piece of cake!"

"You'll never make it! The Amazon Adventure is 15 square miles (418,176,000 square feet) of virtual jungle!"

"Huh?!"

I sighed again. This was a terrible start to the tournament. Mokuba then sighed as well.

"I guess I have no choice. I'm gonna have to –"

Mokuba never got to finish his sentence as Jounouchi dashed out of the Kaiba Dome. "Wait! Come back!" The rest of the gang dashed after him while I stayed next to the younger Kaiba.

"Were you going to offer him a shortcut?" I asked.

"Yeah. You want it?"

"I'll take it if your offering it."

Mokuba nodded and we both walked calmly out of the Kaiba Dome and over to where there was a secret passage way into the jungle. It didn't take long for us to reach where Grandpa was waiting. He was obviously trying to play tough but I saw through his little scheme. "Don't think you can fool me. I know who you are." There was an embarrassed chuckle and, eventually, a small wave.

"Don't tell!" Grandpa whispered at me.

"Yugi and I already know! Jounouchi is probably going to be oblivious until you take that silly bandana off."

Grandpa gave another chuckle before he hardened back up again as leaves began to rustle in the jungle beyond. Sure enough, Jounouchi started to pull out of the brush and towards us.

"If you're not here in 10 seconds, you're disqualified!" Mokuba called, making Jounouchi run even faster. "6, 5…"

Just as he finished saying 5, Jounouchi grabbed the boy's shoulders. He gasped for air like he had run all the way here, which he probably did.

"I… made it." Jounouchi gasped. "With five seconds to spare!"

Then the fact that Mokuba and I made it here before him seemed to click in his head. "How'd you two get here before I did?" Mokuba gave a groan and pushed Jounouchi away.

"I tried to tell you! There's a secret passageway for special guests!"

I thought Jounouchi would immediately burst into tears at the words. While he whimpered, the rest of the gang came running out of the jungle. They were all panting and gasping for air, sweat dripping down their faces. Feeling bad, I stepped over and placed a cold hand on Anzu's forehead. She gave a loud moan and held my hand in place. The blush on Yugi's face at the sound made me nearly laugh again.

"At least you made it on time." I eventually said and Jounouchi sighed.

"Katsuya Jounouchi!" Grandpa called out very dramatically. "It looks like the student is finally going to face his former duel instructor!"

Was he really going to say that? "I mean, it's time to teach you a lesson, kid!" That's better. Less easily identifiable.

"I don't think so, mystery man!" Jounouchi huffed back.

Yep, Jounouchi was still clueless. "Now, let's rock and roll!"

While Jounouchi stepped over to get the duel started, Anzu and Honda were still confused about the 'mysterious' man.

"Yugi, that mystery duelist…" Anzu leaned over to him, pulling my arm along with her. "…sounds just like your grandpa!"

"She can be taught!" I cried.

"Huh?"

"It is my grandpa." Yugi supplied when Anzu was confused.

"But why the disguise?" Honda asked.

I had no witty explanation for that so I only took my hand away from Anzu and gave the other hand to Yugi, who immediately put it on his own forehead. He gave a sigh at the cold, relishing it.

"Perhaps I should explain." Professor Hawkins' voice appeared behind us and we all turned.

He seemed calm, not sweating buckets like the rest of the gang. He must have heard about the passage and followed us here.

"You knew about this all along, Professor?" Yugi asked.

The Professor gave a heaving sigh at the question.

"I tried to talk him out of it but he wouldn't listen."

"Sounds like Grandpa." I sighed as well. "Once his mind is on something, it takes a bulldozer to get him to stop."

Yugi nodded his head in agreement with me. Honda only growled at the words, flipping to look up at Grandpa and Jounouchi.

"I can't believe he actually had us fooled!" Honda growled. "I mean, it is a pretty lame disguise."

Then how were you fooled? I didn't ask the question aloud as I didn't want to get whacked.

"Well, it looks to me like Jounouchi is still clueless." Anzu pointed out.

Yugi and I laughed at the statement and Honda eventually joined in.

"Yeah, what else is new?"

"We should probably tell Jounouchi to go easy on him." Ryuji looked over at the old man as he spoke. "I'm sure he's a bit rusty."

"No, Ryuji." Yugi interjected as he moved my still cold hand to his neck. "Grandpa is going to be just fine."

"Well, let's just hope so." Mokuba added on.

"Hey, you invited him, right?" Honda huffed.

I figured I knew where this was going but I couldn't hear for sure as Anzu poked me.

"Christine?" Anzu whimpered. "Hand?"

I gave a playful sigh, trying to seem like it was a chore but did give her back my other hand. She happily attached it to her forehead again. "I hope Mr. Motou doesn't hurt himself." Anzu said as she sighed from the cold.

"Frankly, I'm more worried about Jounouchi." I told her. "Grandpa can give me a run for my money on dueling and we've only played like two or three times."

Anzu gave a hum but said nothing else. We all shifted out eyes to the duel.

Jounouchi started the duel with his Swordsman of Landstar in attack mode. The little guy didn't have a lot of attack power but he could be useful in a pinch. He was obviously setting up for a trap of some kind as he also played two cards face down. Grandpa followed with two face down cards but played a Wandering Mummy monster, also in attack mode. He didn't attack so Jounouchi started his next turn.

That seemed intentional, I thought to myself as Jounouchi played Little Winguard. He could have attacked his Swordsman - a monster 1000 attack points lower - but didn't. Was he trying to lure Jounouchi into a trap?

The moment Jounouchi attacked, I knew I was right. He attacked with Swordsman of Landstar and activated Graceful Dice to increase its attack power.

"I had a hunch you might try that!" Grandpa cried out. "And that's why I played this! Legendary Gambler!"

The lifted card shot out a die that bonked into Jounouchi's own die. "This Trap card automatically activates whenever my opponent rolls a die. So if I roll a higher number than you, your card is canceled out!" The dice collided and landed: Jounouchi's on a four and Grandpa's on a six. Graceful Dice was canceled out.

"I always have a back up plan!"

Jounouchi's other card lifted. "Now Skull Dice will lower your monster's strength depending on what I roll!" If you can get a higher number than what Grandpa gets. Had he already forgotten Legendary Gambler? It was a continuous trap card! The red die got a five but the white die got a six. Well, can't blame him for trying. The Mummy easily defeated the poor Swordsman, lowering Jounouchi's life points to 3000.

"I know you, Jounouchi. Better than you know yourself."

I heard Jounouchi huff in response.

"Look, mystery meathead, you just got lucky, that's all."

Jounouchi switched his Little Winguard to defense mode and ended his turn. Grandpa didn't let up on him. He started his turn by activating his other face down card, Non-Aggression Area. By discarding a card, he stopped Jounouchi from summoning any monsters next turn. He also played Mirage of Nightmare, letting him draw on Jounouchi's turn until he had four cards in his hand. Before ending his turn, he set one card face down.

"No one can survive the wrath of Grandpa!"

You going there? "I mean, Apdnarg!" Better.

"He's so smooth." Yugi sighed.

"You're telling me?" I asked in reply.

He gave a non-committal sigh before looking back to the duel, keeping my cold hand at his neck.

Jounouchi drew a card but was quickly reminded that he got to draw his cards. Jounouchi huffed back that he also had to throw three cards away, since that was how many he drew, next turn.

"Or do I?" Grandpa challenged.

He flipped up his face down card. "Tada! Reveal Emergency Provisions!" Oooooh…. That made sense. He was going to destroy Mirage of Nightmare before he was forced to discard three cards. I didn't know if that was legit but it worked. He also gained 1000 life points for the destruction of his own card, boosting them to 5000.

It looked like Jounouchi was going to summon a monster but Grandpa stopped that plan quickly, reminding him of his trap card. All Jounouchi had was Little Winguard this turn. Obviously angered, Jounouchi ended his turn.

Grandpa seemed utterly pleased as his turn began. It was hard to tell as his face was covered so I couldn't see his expression. He played a spell card called Ancient City which lifted to tower above him. I didn't understand why it wasn't a field spell but I figured it did something that field spells weren't allowed to. He then sacrificed Wandering Mummy to play Ancient Giant, a behemoth of a monster with 2200 attack points. Of course, it had a catch; if Grandpa didn't attack with it while it was face up on the field, he lost 300 life points. Not a steep catch if you asked me but he kept going. He then played Magic Key, which immediately attached itself to the door of the ancient city behind Grandpa, and allowed Grandpa to play two Stone Giant tokens, each with 400 attack points. These guys also had the same catch as their giant friend but their damage was 1000 life points. Grandpa, of course, attacked, destroying Little Winguard with his Stone Giant while attacked Jounouchi directly with the tokens.

Ouch, that had to have hurt. He wasn't giving Jounouchi any slack.

Grandpa played a card face down before ending his turn and I could see Jounouchi was getting frustrated. "I'd suggest summoning a monster if you'd like to stay in the game, Jounouchi." Jounouchi drew his card angrily.

"I can arrange that!" Jounouchi fired back. "In fact, I'll play five for the price of one!"

Goblin Attack Force could have been extremely useful if Grandpa didn't already have a plan for them. Just as the bat wielding goblins went to attack, Grandpa's face down card lifted. Ordeal of a Traveler was annoying, especially since Jounouchi didn't exactly pay that much attention. In order for Jounouchi to attack, and keep his monster on the field at that, he had to guess what kind of random card Grandpa had in his hand.

"Grandpa's beating Jounouchi at his own game!" Anzu gasped.

"'Cause he knows his strategies." Honda replied. "He and Yugi did teach him how to duel and all."

How come Jounouchi wasn't putting two and two together? Grandpa wasn't doing much to hide his identity.

Unfortunately, Jounouchi guessed wrong and his Goblins were placed back in his hand. I couldn't see the card from my distance but Grandpa said it was a monster card. Jounouchi, back to having no monsters, placed a card face down before ending his turn. Grandpa quickly took the chance to attack but Jounouchi protected himself with Scapegoat, forcing the giant to attack one of them instead. Grandpa then played Ancient Tome, ensuring Jounouchi had a clear shot of knowing what kind of card he had in his hand for the next time he wanted to attack. He then switched the card in his hand with one from his deck.

I spoke too soon apparently.

Grandpa ended his turn with changing his tokens to defense mode. I raised an eyebrow as his life points took a 1000 point hit. Why did he do that? He knew the risk of not attacking with them, why didn't he? This seems way too methodical. The click of the key in the door of the Ancient City confirmed it. He was following very specific steps. But to do what? Jounouchi replayed his Goblin Attack Force but didn't attack. "Guess his strategy worked." Honda's voice knocked me out of my thoughts. "Grandpa's got Jounouchi in the palm of his hand now."

"What is Grandpa's strategy anyway?"

"I'm not sure." I replied. "But from what I'm seeing, it is all too similar to a ritual. There are very specific steps you have to adhere to or you mess the whole thing up."

"Good thought. Do you know anything, Yugi?"

Yugi's head then turned to look at Professor Hawkins. His eyes glinted in the light in a way I hadn't seen before. He was excited.

"No, but I have a feeling Professor Hawkins does." Yugi replied.

"Well, let's just hope that Jounouchi figures it out soon." Honda sighed.

I hoped he did as well but this was Jounouchi. Even so, I hoped he made it out of this duel.

Grandpa started his turn by explaining that Ancient Tome required a card to be discarded but, as Grandpa used Sinister Serpent, it came right back no questions asked. Jounouchi obviously didn't like that as he barked his annoyance.

"Getting sick of me already?" Grandpa teased. "But I haven't even unleashed my most devastating card."

"And what would that be?" Jounouchi huffed.

"My prized possession, my pride and glory, the thing I've been preparing for since I played my first card."

Called it. A powerful monster that required jumping through numerous hoops. He began the final steps by switching his tokens back into attack mode. I heard the key move again. He then called upon that key, along with sacrificing his three monsters and the Ancient Tome to open the Ancient City's gate.

I saw the red eyes before I heard any growls. Was that a dragon?! The large quadrupedal winged dragon shot out of the Ancient City just as I questioned it. That thing was terrifying!

I hoped it didn't breathe fire.

"You know, Yugi," Professor Hawkins then walked over to him and lifted his deck, "your grandfather is not the only one with that card."

Yugi and I both looked and the boy finally pulled away from my cold hand to get a better look at it. Anzu did as well, finally giving me both of my appendages back.

"You have an Ancient Dragon too!" Yugi gasped.

"Yes, but I've never been able to summon it because I don't have all the necessary components. In fact, your grandfather is the only duelist I know who possess all seven cards needed to call forth this divine creature. So I hope you kids appreciate the rare event you've just witnessed."

I didn't know how much I appreciated it as I was still uncertain about the dragon's fire breathing capabilities. The rest of the gang did so I kept quiet. I must have missed part of the conversation as Professor Hawkins was now on an entirely different subject. "Your grandfather is happiest when he's dueling. I think it keeps him young."

"I guess he's just a kid at heart." Anzu teased.

"Just look at him! He's managed to summon a card he's been waiting to play for years, and he's about to use it to win this duel!"

Grandpa then attacked the Goblin Attack Force with his dragon and I immediately flinched from the fire coming out of its mouth. It didn't help that it also destroyed the remaining Scapegoats. I thought I was better about this! No one seemed to notice so I kept myself quiet.

The one I didn't see notice was Yami, who apparently told Yugi of my discomfort. He poked Anzu and the two came back over to me. She slid a hand over my back while Yugi was moral support. I quietly thanked them before looking back to the duel.

"I'll never let you win!" Jounouchi growled at Grandpa. "This tournament is my chance to finally make it big and get some respect – like Yugi gets!"

Jounouchi looked back at his friend with the most desperate expression on his face. "I gotta be number 1. I gotta…"

Yugi gave a fond sigh and a shake of his head.

"Jounouchi, try to lighten up a little bit!" Yugi called to him. "You're so caught up in winning the duel, you forgot what's important! You forgot to have fun!"

"Fun?! This is serious, Yuge!"

"Chill out!" Honda barked then. "This tournament's no big deal. It's just a cheap way for Kaiba Corp to get some publicity!"

Mokuba obviously didn't like how Honda worded that phrase.

"You realize I'm standing right next to you, right?!" Mokuba barked at him.

I finally laughed, the fear still slowly ebbing from my body.

"Just be yourself out there, got it?" Anzu called.

Jounouchi seemed lost for words for a moment before he nodded.

"Thanks, guys." He breathed.

The sounds of Grandpa crying reminded me that he still was doing nothing to hide his identity.

"You kids are so supportive!" Grandpa cried. "I'm so proud of you all!"

"You're proud?! What are you talking about, Apdnarg?"

Grandpa immediately composed himself and the duel continued. Jounouchi began with played Roll of Fate, allowing him to draw a number of cards between one and six depending on what number he rolled as well as banishing that many cards from the game. He had to beat out Legendary Gambler though. The two dice collided with a clunk and… Jounouchi got a four, beating out Grandpa's three! Jounouchi laughed evilly at the four cards as he added them to his hand. He obviously got something good. Jounouchi then played Landstar Forces, allowing him to summon all the Landstar monsters he had in his hand, and he had three of them. They didn't remain on the field long as he quickly sacrificed them to play Gilford the Lightning. I liked this card!

Just as the giant warrior appeared on the field, he moved and Grandpa's dragon exploded into pixels. Whoa! How did… Right, his special ability lets him, if summoned with three monsters, destroy all monsters his opponent controls. Now Grandpa was wide open and Gilford could still attack. I smiled when Jounouchi correctly guessed the monster in Grandpa's hand and was allowed to attack.

Just as Jounouchi ended his turn though, the dragon came back. Really?! Grandpa explained that since Ancient City was still in play, Ancient Dragon could be destroyed but always come back. How annoying! The revived dragon then attacked Gilford, a monster with the same amount of attack points, effectively destroying them both. Except the dragon could come right back.

Jounouchi didn't seem to bummed as he quickly moved forward, playing Pot of Greed. I had to slap a hand over my mouth to stop myself from shouting 'But what does it do?!' Nobody but Meg would have laughed at that. My blond friend was then silent for a moment as he mulled over his cards. Did he get something good?

"You're thinking about it too much!" Honda barked.

"Keep your comments to yourself!" Jounouchi barked back before playing.

He started with Premature Burial, letting him bring a monster back to the field at the cost of 800 life points. He then played Giant Trunade. Things were winding down now. The giant wind storm sent back Jounouchi's own Premature Burial and Grandpa's Ancient City to their hands, letting Jounouchi play his card again, bringing back Gilford. He let the same thing happen with Gilford and the Ancient Dragon but this time, there was no resurrecting it. They both exploded into a flash of pixels and neither of them came back. The only monsters left were Jounouchi's Goblins, who quickly ended the duel.

"Did Jounouchi just win?" Anzu gawked.

"It would appear he did." Honda gawked back. "I don't know how…"

We all stood there for a second before dashing up onto the platform to be with Jounouchi and Grandpa.

"Nice duel, stranger." Jounouchi complimented as he reached down to help the old man. "I just wish I knew who you were."

Grandpa chuckled.

"Actually, you already do!"

He pulled off his bandana and laughed again. "Peek-a-boo!"

"No way!"

"Way!"

We all burst into laughter at the exchange. I had never seen Grandpa with such a large smile on his face, especially when he looked over at us. "Pretty good disguise, huh? That could be my new look." We only continued to laugh.

"There's something I don't get, Mr. Motou. Why'd you join this tournament in the first place? You should be resting."

"Tell ya the truth, I was hoping to duel you."

"Why me?"

Why not him, I wanted to sass but I kept quiet. Grandpa crossed his arms over his chest.

"I did teach you everything I know, so I thought it was about time to test you."

"And? Did I pass or what?"

"Let's see."

Grandpa playfully thought about it before answering. "If I had to grade your duel, you'd get… 'A plus'."

"Yeah!"

"Well, I guess there is a first time for everything." Mokuba hummed, leading to a laugh from me.

"You said it not me." I giggled.

"Pinch me, 'cause I must be dreaming." Honda added on.

I leaned over to actually pinch him and he shouted in pain and shock. "It's a figure of speech!"

"I know!"

There was more laughter with Honda eventually joining in.

"What a way to kick things off." Anzu breathed.

"You said it."

"So… why'd you pick the name 'Apndarg?'" Jounouchi asked, oblivious to our conversation.

"It's Grandpa spelled backwards!" Grandpa replied cheerfully.

I already knew it and it made complete sense but, of course, Jounouchi didn't seem to get it. It got another laugh from me.

Never change, Jounouchi.

**Now for the disclaimer! *I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! I only own my OC, Christine! If you recognize anything, I don't own it either!***

**First duel is in the books! Yes! **

***No comment from Bakura***

**Nothing? No comments from the peanut gallery? **

***More silence***

**That doesn't bode well. I should go look for him. **

***Robyn leaves the room in search of Bakura. Meanwhile, he pokes his head around the corner, mouth full of Robyn's quarantine donuts.***

**Bakura: Don't tell her. I'm going freaking crazy in this house! Get me out of here! **


	7. Christine's Jealous Again

**Hi! And we're back with another chapter! I hope everyone is coping well with being in increased social distancing and all that. I'm starting to go a little stir crazing from being stuck inside for so long; I live with a couple people who are higher risk so I can't take any risks. **

**This episode is actually one of my favorites of this arc because Rebecca is such a little sass master and I've been planning how to do this episode for a long time. Making Christine jealous is surprisingly hard to write out. I hope you all like it! **

***I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! I only own Christine, my OC. If you recognize something, I don't own that either.***

It took a few minutes for our large group to exit the virtual jungle. With the sun rising even higher in the sky, the temperature started to rise as well. Trying to be quiet about it, I made my hands cold again and placed them on my own head. The cold didn't last long on my skin, quickly melting. I really was melting.

"Nice win, Jounouchi." Honda complimented as we fully left the Amazon Trail. "You made it to round two!"

Honda then sighed. "And I owe Ryuji a steak, oh well." Betting with your friend's chance of victory? How mean, Honda! Mokuba dashed over to one of the large screens dotting the park just as Roland's voice appeared.

"Attention!" Roland's voice was crisp and clear even through the speakers. "The next two bouts will now begin!"

"Hurry up, guys," Mokuba turned and cried to us, "or we're gonna miss the next duel!"

That got our attentions and we moved to the screen as well.

"In Block B, we have Regional Champ, and self-proclaimed child genius: Rebecca Hawkins!"

Oooh! Rebecca time! "She'll face the model turned actress turned Kung-fu master turned duelist: Vivian Wong!" Oh boy…

"Not her!" Anzu whined. "I'm telling you that diva is nothing but bad news!"

I actually felt the annoyance creep up through my system again. I squashed it with a breath but knew it would be back. The only one who didn't seem to care was Grandpa, who quickly cheered.

"Ah ha!" Grandpa practically jumped in place. "Yes! It's another duel! I can't get enough! Let's go!"

"I guess someone's excited to be here." Jounouchi teased.

"I know you like dueling but if you don't calm down, you're gonna hurt yourself." Honda added on, to which Grandpa quickly ignored.

The old man grabbed the shoulders of his friend and practically threw himself in his face.

"It's been so long since I've been near the action." Grandpa gasped to Professor Hawkins. "I've just gotta – AH!"

The gasp of pain caught me off guard but the sight of Grandpa falling to the ground scared me.

"Told ya."

"Grandpa!" Yugi gasped, moving to be next to him. "Are you ok?"

I settled as well, not seeing any exterior wounds. He was clutching at his lower back though. Did he throw his back out? Professor Hawkins then settled down on the other side with a hand on his back, sliding it like he wanted to put something back into place.

"Ah." The man almost sighed. "It appears he has thrown his back out."

"Yeouch." I mumbled in sympathy.

"Poor guy." Anzu agreed.

"I'll radio for a doctor." Mokuba helpfully pulled out a walkie talkie like device and began to push buttons loudly.

"Just… relax, Grandpa." Yugi managed.

"Yugi…" Grandpa almost whimpered back. "Don't worry about me. You just go with your friends and enjoy the rest of the tournament."

"But I can't leave you like this…"

"Go on." Professor Hawkins interrupted before Yugi could argue any further. "I shall look after your grandfather. You all go and root for Rebecca."

"But are you sure, Professor?"

"I could stay with you all." I offered but the Professor shook his head firmly.

"My granddaughter would never admit it, but she could really use some support out there."

With only small objections, we were eventually moved away by the doctors assisting Grandpa. Since there was nothing left to say, we all headed off to where Rebecca's duel was. From the images on the screen earlier, it looked like a train station. Anzu and I poked around our map again and saw the main terminal wasn't too far from where we were, only a 15-minute walk. But since we ran, we made it there a tad faster.

The duel was already underway when we arrived. Vivian had a monster on the field and Rebecca did as well along with two cards face down.

"Check it out, guys!" Jounouchi cried as he dashed up the tunnel spanning the tracks. "I found her!"

Rebecca looked up at us as we dashed over to look out the windows down at her and the duel. "Yo, Beck! How's it going?" Her face grew even brighter when she saw Yugi.

"Yugi – Ah!" She tried to cry up at us but Vivian stopped her.

"Hi, Yugi-poo!" Vivian cried up to us. "I knew you'd be here to cheer me on, my little dumpling!"

Rebecca began fuming, flames near spouting from her ears, at the cries while I heard Yugi give an uncomfortable laugh from next to me.

"Whaaaa?" Yugi gasped, sliding away from the window.

"Not quite!" Rebecca snapped at her opponent. "Yugi's here for me!"

"Don't worry, pumpkin!" Vivian continued unabated. "As soon as I trounce this little twerp, it's all about you and me!"

Pumpkin? The annoyance came back quickly. I had to hide my clenched fists into the frame of the window.

Yugi gave that uncomfortable laugh again. Thankfully, Anzu gave an annoyed sigh at the words. I peeked over to see the other boys all coming over to congratulate Yugi with all the attention.

"Oh, man!" Jounouchi cheered. "You're my hero, Yuge!"

"So, what's your secret?" Honda added on.

"Umm…" Yugi managed through the tight head lock. "Natural charm?"

Anzu exploded.

"This is why Christine and I need more female friends!" She snapped at the boys before looking back to Rebecca. "Show no mercy, Rebecca! That glamazon has gotta go!"

Rebecca took the command and ran with it.

"So…" Rebecca spoke clearly and crisply. "You ready to dance?"

Vivian quickly returned her eyes to the younger girl, hardly looking afraid.

"Ah, I don't dance with preschoolers." Vivian clapped back.

Vivian was going to begin or continue her turn, I wasn't sure, but I was distracted with a poke to my elbow. I looked over to see Yugi looking out the window but glancing over.

"You ok?" He asked.

"Perfectly fine." I replied promptly in a deadpan.

He flinched back, obviously taking my words as the sign to back off. I wasn't in the mood to talk.

I wasn't jealous. I was just annoyed.

I looked back to the duel to see Vivian trying to attack Rebecca's Fire Princess with one of her monsters. The attack didn't connect.

"In your dreams, Viv!" Rebecca taunted. "I activate my trap card!"

Gravity Bind stopped every monster with more than three stars from attacking which was helpful for the situation but now she couldn't attack herself as Fire Princess had four stars. Perhaps she was just doing it as a precaution to avoid attacks. Or maybe to get a chance to activate an effect? "Get a load of this! First, I'm activating Marie the Fallen One's special ability from the Card Graveyard!" The monster appeared out of nowhere and blew golden sparks towards Rebecca before vanishing again. "Now I automatically receive 200 extra life points for every turn that Marie remains in the graveyard! And to finish things off, I'll activate the special ability of my Fire Princess! So every time my life points increase, yours decrease by 500!"

A full stalemate. Impressive Rebecca. With just three cards, she's stopped Vivian from attacking and can whittle her life points down a bit every turn. She played one last card face down before ending her turn.

I jumped when a Blue Eyes train sped through the station, just barely missing the monster cards played there. Jeez, no regard for speed, huh? Again, with Vivian's turn, I was poked again. I looked over to see Yugi again.

"You ok?" He asked.

He wasn't asking about my anger this time, I knew that. But about my jump. I gave him a smile this time.

"Just spooked." I replied. "Thank you for asking."

I was given a smile and a nod before he looked back to the duel. I then felt bad for the snap earlier but it looked like I was forgiven. If he asked about it later, I would apologize.

I still wasn't jealous!

I looked back to the duel just as Rebecca cut off another card type Vivian could use.

"As long as this trap remains on my side of the field, your spell cards are useless!" Rebecca taunted.

Just before the trap would have gone into effect, Rebecca quickly activated Scapegoat, giving her four extra monsters for protection. "Oh, well, I guess your storm blew over." People were obviously confused as to how this worked as Vivian's spell card was destroyed while Scapegoat wasn't.

"Hold on…" Honda mused. "Why didn't Scapegoat disappear?"

"That's because she drew Scapegoat first but played it last and then…" Jounouchi thought about it for a second before giving up. "No clue."

"It's simple guys..." Yugi chuckled as he went to explain. "The last card played in a turn always activates first, so the first card has no effect on the last, even though it was played first!"

"There's a term for that…" I mused aloud. "What was it again?"

"Chaining!"

I bonked myself on the forehead.

"There it is! I couldn't remember for the life of me!"

Yugi chuckled at my response before looking Honda who was asking for more clarification.

"Wait…" Honda leaned over. "So last is first?"

"Right." Yugi nodded. "And since Rebecca used Scapegoat last, it was unaffected by Imperial Order."

Jounouchi began nodding his head like it all made sense. I don't think he understood.

"Come on, man." Jounouchi tried to laud over Honda. "It's simple."

"Then perhaps you'd like to explain it to me again." Honda brought Jounouchi's head back to size with the simple statement.

Jounouchi gave a nervous chuckle at the request and said nothing. It made me crack a smile and laugh. He definitely didn't understand it. A shiver ran down my spine, which I originally chalked up to sweat, but was corrected when my boyfriend leaned over.

"How long do you think it'll take for Jounouchi to be mumbling aloud about how confused he is?" Yami asked teasingly. "I say only two minutes."

I gave a faux gasp.

"You'd bet against Jounouchi figuring it out?" I asked, lifting a hand to my chest. "I'm almost appalled."

"Come on, Mereret… Indulge me for a little bet."

"I know better than to get involved in bets with you."

Yami gave me a playful side eye and my defenses came right down. "Five minutes at most." Damn it. Yami's look remained as he glanced at his watch before looking away. He switched back with Yugi so that he could look over the duel again.

This wasn't going to end well for me.

"Okay, twerp!" Vivian snapped as I looked back down to the duel. "Playtime's over! Sure you may have stopped me from playing any of my spell cards or any monster that has more than three stars but… watch this! You can't stop me from playing Gyaku-Gire Panda!"

The 800 attack point Panda was no cuddly bear. His growl made it all the way to the tunnel where we were. It was creepy. The panda's special ability wasn't cute either. For every monster on the field, the panda got 500 attack points. Ok… 500 times 5 was… 2500 attack points. That made the attack power go up to 3300! That could beat Kaiba's Blue Eyes! "What's wrong? You don't have any hidden traps to stop me?" The panda then attacked one of Rebecca's Scapegoats. "And since my panda's attack points are greater than you Scapegoat's defense points, the difference comes out of your life points! One more attack and you're bear bait!"

She only had 900 points left now! That panda was ridiculous! But at least the attack point went down to 2800 with the one missing. It was a… little more manageable. "What's wrong, Beck? You got the sniffles 'cause my panda scratched out most of your life points with one swipe of his paw? How sad."

"Please." Rebecca snapped. "You think I care? No!"

"It's not like you can do anything."

"Guess again! First I'll free up my spell cards!"

Vivian definitely didn't like that. Rebecca then got her two hundred life points from Marie the Fallen One, lowering Vivian's to 3000.

"You're really starting to bug me, you little runt!"

"How sad."

Savage! Yikes, Rebecca! The blonde then played Token Thanksgiving, destroying the last three scapegoats but giving Rebecca 800 life points for each one, bringing her back to 3500. The panda's attack power dropped further, now to 1300. Vivian's life points dropped again due to Fire Princess, dropping to 2500. Rebecca then played Injection Fairy Lily, giving her 2000 life points to her to give her enough attack power to destroy the panda for good.

That was a lot of life point movement. What was it now? I stared down at the duel disks to see if I could see the numbers. Rebecca had 1500 while Vivian now had 900. Ok. This was reasonable.

"Oh, yeah!" Anzu cheered. "The Beck is back!"

We were one voice short for cheering so I looked for our loud blond. Jounouchi wasn't looking at the duel but at his fingers.

"So the first card's last?" Jounouchi was mumbling. "Then the last card goes first? I'm still lost."

I was poked in the arm by Yugi, who was holding up his watch.

"Two minutes." He simply said.

"That was not two minutes!" I whispered back.

Yugi nodded his head. "It was not! That was like four!" Yugi shrugged, holding his watch up again. It had been on a timer and Yugi's hand had stopped it just as Jounouchi began speaking his confusion.

It was exactly two minutes.

I gave a huff, rolling my eyes. "This is why I don't make bets with him! He always wins!" Yugi laughed at my groans of annoyance. I rolled my eyes again. "Fudge!" Yami came back out again, snickering in my ear. "Fine fine! You win." There was another moment of snickering before he wrapped his arm around my own.

"No longer jealous?" He asked in a low tone.

I forced my anger aside and focused on being calm.

"I was not jealous in the first place."

"Oh, really…"

I made the mistake of peeking over at him, seeing the same playful expression on his face. "It sure looked like you were very annoyed when those two were after…"

"They're after Yugi, not you!"

"But do they know that?"

My blush gave me away. "The only people who know about us are in this tunnel. Outside of here, Yugi and I are the same person."

"But you're not."

Yami smiled, tightening his grip on my arm. Damn it! I loved this! I returned the hold, hearing Yami hum.

Ok… Maybe I was jealous.

He stayed out, arm wrapped with mine, as the duel continued. We had missed a little bit as both of Vivian's monsters were gone and were replaced with a large woman in brown armor wielding two swords. Gravity Bind's effect stopped her from attacking so she must have been powerful.

"She can't attack with that thing!" Ryuji cried. "Dragon Lady's a seven-star monster!"

"That's strange…" Yami hummed next to me, immediately caught on the duel again. "What's she going to do with that?"

"Nothing good." I replied.

Yami hummed again, agreeing with me.

Of course, I was right. Every turn that Dragon Lady didn't attack, she got to destroy an opponent's spell or trap card. She, of course, destroyed Gravity Bind. Vivian then played Mystic Eruption card, lowering Rebecca's life points by 1000 simply because she lost a spell or trap card that turn.

"So, short stuff…" Vivian was beginning to taunt again. "see what happens when you party with the big girls? Maybe you'd have better luck playing a game of 'Go Fish'! But I think the funniest part of this whole duel is that you actually thought Yugi came here to see you!"

Vivian laughed while Anzu huffed down at her and my eye twitched. She was about this again?!

"Oh!" Anzu huffed. "Like he came here to see you?!"

Before I could even consider freezing something, Yami slid a hand up and down my arm soothingly. It was enough to calm me down though my face was a bright blush again.

Rebecca was obviously immune to the teasing now as she still had a smile on her face.

"If I were about to lose this duel, I wouldn't be laughing." Rebecca stopped Vivian's laughter dead. "This is where it all ends, Viv, for you that is. My move!"

Rebecca collected her 200 life points, lowering Vivian's to 400. The only thing in her way now was Dragon Lady. The blonde then sacrificed her two monsters to summon a monster near and dear to my heart, Guardian Angel Joan.

"Hey!" I cheered making Yami chuckle at me. "Don't laugh! She's my—"

I stopped dead when I saw Joan peek up at me under her short hair. She glanced around the tunnel for a moment before looking back to the duel. "Huh? Yami, did you see that?"

"See what?"

"See-!"

Joan wasn't going to do it again. I reluctantly sighed and waved away any further questioning. I did see it though! What was that?

"And since you got rid of my Gravity Bind…" Rebecca teasingly taunted. "Guardian Angel is able to attack!"

"Hold on!" Vivian tried to stall. "Even if you destroy my Dragon Lady, I'll still have some points left!"

"Trust me, I've done the math."

There is no doubting Rebecca when it comes to math. The girl then played Silent Doom, letting her summon a monster from her graveyard in defense mode. She used it on Fire Princess and I immediately knew what she was doing. I had to hold back a cackle to not scare anybody. Guardian Angel attacked, easily destroying Dragon Lady, and then activated her special ability. When Joan destroyed a monster, she gifted the life point equivalent of the monster's attack power. And since Rebecca's went up, Vivian's went down to zero.

She had won the duel.

"Way to go, Rebecca!" Anzu cheered down at her.

"Thanks, Anzu!"

I pulled away from Yami's arm when Rebecca started dashing up the stairs. I didn't think Rebecca would like to see our arms entwined like this when she was expecting Yugi.

"You should give Yugi control." I whispered.

Yami gave me a playful look.

"You won't be jealous?" He asked.

"No, I won't. What would I have to be jealous about?"

Yami chuckled, pressing a kiss to my cheek, before giving Yugi control again. The boy stepped around me to greet Rebecca as she ran full tilt into the tunnel.

"We knew you'd pull through." Ryuji teased a compliment.

Rebecca didn't listen at all. She simply ran for Yugi.

"Schoompie!" Rebecca cheered as she wrapped her arms around Yugi. "I won!"

There was no annoyance. No jealousy. I was fine.

Anzu was not. She growled so loudly I thought the panda had come back. I did laugh when Rebecca then taunted Vivian through the window, seeing Yugi's face so red he might have become a tomato.

As we left the station, Anzu pulled me aside. Her face was lit up in a bright smile. I immediately narrowed my eyes. Oh boy…

"That was so cute!" She chirped. "It's like he just knew and wanted to make you feel important!"

I hastily hushed her as Rebecca began looking around for the whispers.

"Don't say anything!" I hissed.

"Why not?! You two are so cute!"

My blush came back strong but Anzu didn't have time to tease me about it as we approached a tv with the results of the other duel going on. It looked like the detective duelist won, beating the duelist from… was it Texas?

"Check it out." Jounouchi said calmly. "The other match just ended, too."

"And according to Kaiba's chart…" Ryuji looked up at the screen as well. "Jounouchi's going to duel against whoever wins this match."

Anzu and I then got to the TV, seeing the man with the pink/purple suit and pink hair standing in front of a flower clock, calmly smelling a flower as he waited patiently for his opponent to arrive. Oh boy…

"Zigfried Lloyd will now face Fortune Salim!" Roland's voice appeared out of the TV screen.

Sadly, the opponent wasn't Fortune Salim, but Rex and Weevil who had stolen his clothes. What happened to the real Fortune Salim? There was no time to question that as Zigfried allowed the two to duel against him. Was he trying to prove something?

The duel was… rather quick. Rex and Weevil pulled out their most powerful cards but were defeated by Zigfried, who only played one card, Ride of the Valkyries. Now Jounouchi had to duel him.

Great.

**Yeah! We're done! ...Hey, Bakura? **

**Bakura: Yeah? **

**Where are my donuts? I was hoping to have some. **

**Bakura: *Looks to the audience like in the Office.* I haven't seen them. Ask Marik. **

**Ok. **

**Bakura waits a couple seconds before sighing in relief. **


	8. Into the Pit

**Hello! Hope everyone has been well! Going a bit stir crazy but am doing my best to survive. This chapter was a fun one to write as I love to torment Christine. Sadly, this isn't the last time I put her through this. My poor character. Hope you at least enjoy her torment. I also must say that I love Zigfried's accent from the show so I did write in the accent. I hope no one is offended with it; I always loved that accent.**

***I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! I only own Christine, my OC. If you recognize anything, I don't own that either!***

After the… duel between Zigfried and the pseudo tag team of Rex and Weevil as well as a quick bite to eat, the gang and I went back to the Kaiba Dome to wait for the announcement of the next round. I worried about grandpa the entire time I ate though. I hoped he and Professor Hawkins were alright. I wasn't given much opportunity to worry though as I was quickly dragged after an excited Jounouchi.

"Spectators and Duelists!" Roland's voice appeared through the speakers in the small room where we and the rest of the duelists were situated. "Round One has come to a close and half of our super 16 competitors have been sent home! So now I give you the elite eight!"

The screen shifted to the duel matchups. "And first up: it's our boy wonder! The undefeated Leon Wilson! But someone is looking to take a bite out of Leon's winning streak! So evacuate the beach and call in the Coast Guard! It's the Man-Eater: Ethan Sharke!"

"Come on!" Jounouchi whined. "Enough with the fancy intros! Let's get to my duel already!"

But wasn't it already on the screen? And he'd have known his opponent after Rebecca's duel. I raised my eyebrow at Jounouchi's excitement. Oh boy…

"That's Jounouchi." Anzu sighed. "Always a model of patience."

"You know you might want to take this time to run through your game strategy." Yugi suggested. "Some last minute studying couldn't hurt."

"Jounouchi hates cramming!" Honda teased, moving to lean an arm over Jounouchi's shoulders. "Which is too bad 'cause he's about to get schooled by that freakazoid who took out Weevil and Rex in one move!"

I gave a quick sigh, suddenly annoyed. Zigfried was just sitting by himself reading a book. That didn't open him up to being called names.

"Could you not call him a freakazoid?" I asked. "It's his taste in fashion. Don't bash him on it."

"Even so, the only thing I'm scare of his that hairdo." Jounouchi huffed, not responding to my request. "Hey, buddy! Pinky the Clown called; he wants his wig back!"

I gave an even louder sigh. I think I was just ignored. Yugi looked up to give me a sympathetic look, shrugging when I gestured at our friends. Thankfully one person was on my side.

"Oh, like you're in any position to be making fun of anyone's hairdo." Rebecca sassed without even looking up from her cards.

I had to stifle a laugh at the expression Jounouchi turned on her.

"I heard that!"

"Take it down a notch, will ya?" Ryuji tried to calm the growling Jounouchi. "You're too high strung to duel."

"Who're you calling 'High strung'?! I'm cool as a cucumber!"

"That's something someone high strung would say." I tried to say but was apparently ignored except for Yugi, who stifled a laugh.

"Oh, yeah, real cool." Honda spoke just a second after I finished.

Jounouchi heard him and spun around to grab his coat.

"I'm not in the mood!" Jounouchi growled.

"You wanna piece of me?!"

The two began to grapple back and forth. I gave another sigh. This was hardly the place to start a fight. What if Jounouchi got disqualified for it? Anzu stepped in as she was closest.

"Can you two grow up for like five minutes?" She asked, an annoyed tilt to her voice.

Their fight then pushed Anzu back a few paces. I tensed to catch her if she fell but she quickly got her footing. "I need some female friends!"

"He started it!" Both Jounouchi and Honda snapped.

Anzu's attention was then taken by Leon, who was quietly watching the whole exchange. I hadn't even seen him there until Anzu turned and spoke to him.

"You okay, Leon?"

The younger boy looked up, as if surprised she noticed him. He then gave a weary smile.

"I guess I just have a case of the pre-duel jitters." Leon admitted. "We can't all be as calm as Jounouchi."

Jounouchi's name broke up the fight and the blond stepped away from Honda.

"Hey!" Jounouchi cheered. "Sure you can! You can't be too bad if you made it to the final eight, right? You just gotta do what I do and believe you're gonna win!"

"Well, that's just it. I'm afraid cause then I'll have to face off against Yugi. Just thinking about it freaks me out."

That made a surprised noise escape Yugi and I. He was already worried about the championship round? That seemed like a lifetime away.

"Listen, pal. Just take this one duel at a time, okay?"

"Jounouchi's got a point." Rebecca agreed. "It's too soon to worry about the Championship duel now. Besides, you're gonna have to duel against me before you can get to Yugi."

That made me laugh. That would be a fun duel to watch. Leon looked a little better although still nervous.

"Well…" Leon drawled. "Just make sure you go easy on me, okay, Beck? I've seen you in action; you can be brutal!"

My laugh faded as the door opened, revealing Mokuba with a couple of suits standing behind him.

"Ok, let's get this show on the road!" He announced.

All of the duelists began to climb to their feet, including Zigfried, who placed his book into his jacket.

"Alright!" Jounouchi cheered. "It's go time!"

We all gathered our things and made for the door. I had just caught up after helping Rebecca with some of her flyaway cards after Jounouchi tried to be courteous with Zigfried. It was awfully nice of him to do that…

"Unlike you, I don't rely on luck." Zigfried practically slapped away Jounouchi's kind words of luck.

Ouch. And I defended this guy? Dang. Jounouchi definitely didn't like his words being thrown back so he chased after Zigfried.

"I was trying to be nice!"

There was a moment of glancing around before we moved to follow. When I turned the corner into the main hallway of the Kaiba Dome, Jounouchi was climbing off the ground, growling wildly. "I'll touch more than that!"

"Jounouchi, don't!" Yugi cried out to him.

Jounouchi stopped moving while Zigfried kept walking for a few steps. He stopped when he was a good few feet away, turning his head to look back blankly at Jounouchi.

"If I ver you, herr Jounouchi." Zigfried said in his accent. "I'd listen to my little friend."

Little?! Sure, Yugi was short but he wasn't little!

"Well, I got news for you: you're not me!" Jounouchi fired back.

"True. Because if I vas I'd be a verthless street punk with no talent. Unt, not to mention, appalling taste in outerwear.

"That does it! No one insults my fashion sense and gets away with it! So bring it on!"

"I've vasted more than enough time on you already."

Zigfried moved to start walking again. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a duel to vin."

"Hey!"

Honda immediately moved to stop Jounouchi from charging the man again, wrapping his arms around Jounouchi's torso. The rest of us following slowly behind.

"Hey, man!" Honda huffed. "Save it for the game!"

"Who does he think he's dealing with anyway?!"

Jounouchi then pushed Honda away, though not hard enough to actually push him. "Get offa me! It's time to beat the designer pants of that chump!" Honda went to reach out to Jounouchi again, trying to tell him to be careful, but the blond thundered on.

"He better get a grip or he's history." Ryuji huffed at Jounouchi's vanishing back. "The match didn't even start yet and Jounouchi's letting this guy mess with his head."

"He's just easy to rile up." I hummed.

"You can say that again."

Wow… I was actually heard this time.

"Well, I guess I should be heading out to my match now too." Rebecca sighed.

"Are you ok?" Yugi asked her.

Rebecca lifted her head to look at Yugi.

"It's just that I know Jounouchi really needs you out there to cheer him on. But that means you won't be there to watch me duel."

"My heart goes out to you." Anzu replied in a deadpan to which I elbowed her.

Rebecca didn't seem to hear it, or she simply ignored it, as she was still smiling.

"But you know there is a bright side to this whole thing: I'm planning on staying in this tournament till the very end so you'll have plenty more chances to root for me!"

Rebecca happily skipped away to which Yugi and I smiled at her. What a little spitfire.

"Go get 'em, Rebecca!" Yugi called after her.

She was barely around the corner when Honda turned back around to face us.

"Come on." Honda huffed. "Jounouchi's gonna need all the help he can get if he plans on beating Zigfried."

"No joke." I replied.

I was swatted at by Yugi but I didn't regret it. My amusement was cut short by Mokuba approaching us.

"Yugi, wait." Mokuba breathed gently. "I need to speak to you right away."

We all glanced to each other before turning around. Yugi was at the head of the group when Mokuba began talking again. "So have you noticed any strange behavior coming from any of the competitors?" I wanted to sass something about Vivian but I kept my mouth shut.

"I don't think so." Yugi replied. "What's going on?"

"You have to promise not to tell anyone. If any word of this gets out, it could ruin the Grand Championship and our whole company for good."

Seemed a bit dramatic but, with our experiences thus far, I continued to keep my mouth shut. "Remember when the DuelTek computer went berserk and locked us inside the Kaiba Dome?" Mokuba told us about the possibility of the same hacker being one of the competitors and how Kaiba asked him to keep track of things while he kept an eye on the background checks.

"Who do you think it is, Mokuba?"

"I don't have the slightest clue and that's why I need your help. You gotta let me know if you notice anything strange."

"Sure." Anzu agreed, albeit with a slight tilt of her head. "But you do realize that strange things happen to us all the time, right."

"She's got a point." Honda agreed.

"I do admit, some of it's my fault…" I mumbled but trailed away when Ryuji leaned into my shoulder.

"We're not blaming you but…" Ryuji said in a teasing voice. "But trouble does follow you like the plague."

I raised my eyebrow at him, remembering the words I could constantly tell Yami during Battle City. "You combined with us just makes a full-on beacon for suspicious activity." I playfully punched him away but had no time to laugh.

"But I was hoping this time would be different." Yugi's voice was laced with such anger that I couldn't speak.

All the hilarity died quickly. "But so much for that, huh? Just once I'd like to duel in a tournament for the thrill of it and not have to worry about who's trying to take over the world!" The small shiver down my spine revealed that Yami had poked his head out to try and calm Yugi. It wasn't working. "Why can't things be easy for a change. We should be having fun, not hunting down bad guys." Mokuba stared at Yugi's face for a moment before an expression of determination covered it.

"Don't worry." Mokuba told him. "We'll find him soon! I'm not gonna let punk ruin this tournament!"

"Oh yeah!" Honda cheered.

Yugi still looked a little downtrodden so I placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed it. He still didn't look up.

"You can count on us." Anzu told Mokuba.

"Now let's get out there, watch Jounouchi's duel, and do what we do best, cheer from the sidelines!"

Honda just spoke the epitome of what I do all the time! I didn't know whether or not to feel attacked. There was a small breath before Yugi finally looked up and nodded his head.

"Look at the bright side, there's never a dull moment, right?!"

"That's for sure." Yugi agreed.

We all headed off as a group to where Jounouchi was dueling. Where would it be this time? There were tons of things in the park so Kaiba could have put it anywhere. I peeked at the screens as we passed them, trying to get some sort of hint. Leon looked to be in a Haunted House, the detective and the magician were in a theater, Rebecca was in a Ferris Wheel but… I couldn't tell with Jounouchi's. I then started to get a pit of dread in my stomach based on the signs we were passing. 'Volcanic Pit'?! Oh boy… Hopefully we weren't headed there…

Oh no… we kept approaching the large volcano like structure. Are we gonna turn and just walk past it?

Please?

The gang entered the loading dock for the 'Volcanic Pit' attraction but I stopped at the entrance. It was getting harder to breathe. That silly burn from the first few weeks here could really escalate to this?! I thought I was better! No matter how much my logical thoughts tried to fight it, my legs just wanted to run as far from here as possible.

"Christine?" Ryuji's voice hit me first. "Are you okay?"

I couldn't answer. My mouth moved but no words could escape. "Guys, we got a problem!" I could only faintly hear the rest of the gang and Mokuba run over; my name being called gently but it kept flubbing in my ears. I could only the pounding of my heart in my head. The quick shiver down my spine caught me off guard as well as the hands at my biceps. I looked up, seeing Yami.

"You okay, Mereret?" He whispered, words just barely hitting my ears.

I shook my head. I wasn't ok. "Ok…" My boyfriend looked around like he was trying to see what could have scared me and he quickly realized it. "Volcano… I understand." He turned to the rest of the gang, said something, then turned back to me. "We're gonna go on a quick walk, ok?" I couldn't say anything against him so he gently took my shoulders and led me out of the loading dock. Our other friends looked worried but headed in to support Jounouchi.

Yami and I walked a short distance away and sat down on a bench. It was strangely quiet for an amusement park but that was probably because of all the duels; no one had time to ride a roller coaster. I managed a deep breath, gathering my wits again. Yami's hand settled on my upper back and I turned to him. "Bit better?" I tried to speak and actually found the words.

"Yeah." I managed. "Sorry."

"Don't apologize. It's ok. There's nothing wrong with being frightened."

I opened the hand that had been burned so long ago. If I thought about it, I could still see the dark red burn stretch across my palm. That moment… feeling the flame licking at my skin… I had put it out quickly enough but… My body seemingly remembered the danger it presented. Yami's hand suddenly blocked it, moving to hold it. "Does it still hurt?" I shook my head.

"No. It's fine."

Yami was silent as I lifted my head to look at him. "Do I have to go in there, Yami? Please say I don't have to." My boyfriend gave a gentle sigh, moving to wrap his free arm around me. I clutched onto his jacket, trying to hold back tears.

"I would but Jounouchi needs you in there, just as much as he needs all of us. It'll keep him calm and, hopefully, clear headed."

I gave a giggle at that despite the fear still coursing through me. Hopefully was the key word in that entire statement. "There's nothing to be scared of in there. The Volcano bit is just aesthetic. From what Mokuba says, it's just water in pipes, lights and a couple of heaters. There's no eruption and, while there is minimal flame, it's kept far away from where the duel will be." I gave a whimper into Yami's jacket and his grip tightened. "I promise it's gonna be okay." There was a moment of hesitation but I eventually nodded. Yami wouldn't lie to me about this nor would he try to play it down just to get me inside.

"If it does erupt, I'm gonna be real mad."

"And you'll have every right to be."

There was another breath before I pulled away. "Ready?" I nodded and the two of us headed back into the loading dock. Yugi had taken over again, helping me into the cart and off we went. It wasn't too long a trip to get to where the duel was but, hopefully, we weren't too far away.

"Christine?" Yugi asked and I turned my head. "You never told me how you got burned."

"I didn't?" I gave a hum, wondering how to tell him. "Well… Do you remember that director? The one who came to school?"

"The idol incident?"

Yugi's expression made it clear he did remember. He looked less than amused.

"Yeah, that… Um… well… Yami and I went after him. There was a game and…"

I lifted my hand to look at where the burn had been. "I burnt the film he had recorded of you and Jounouchi; I wanted to get rid of the footage so that no one else could use it. The flame enchantment didn't go out when I wanted it to so it spread beyond just my finger and to my palm. I put it out easily enough but it was hot enough to burn me rather quickly." I lowered my hand to give a playful shrug. "And that's the story." Yugi gave me a playful elbow and I peeked over to see him smiling.

"Thanks. It's nice to know I have friends who look out for me."

I gave a smile, leaning over to give him a half hug. I'd risk every burn possible if it meant Yugi and the rest of the gang were safe.

Soon enough, we arrived at the duel location. Our friends quickly cheered at me climbing out of the cart, helping me onto the small rock base they were standing on. The room was fine, lukewarm, but fine.

I'd be fine.

Most of the heat was coming out from Jounouchi's ears, which were steaming from anger. He didn't even notice Yugi and I had arrived as he was so mad. Hopefully, he could gather his wits. The two duelists set up their duel disks and began the duel.

"Alright, Herr Jounouchi." Zigfried's voice carried clearly across the large cavern. "Since you're clearly at a disadvantage in so many vays, vhy don't you make the first move?"

"He's just messing with your head, man!" Honda shouted at Jounouchi.

"Yeah!" Ryuji agreed. "Don't freak out! Remember stay focused."

I didn't think their words of calming worked.

"Try to keep up!" Jounouchi cried out.

Jounouchi drew his hand and I immediately knew – just a gut feeling really – that he had a terrible hand. That feeling just… it gets you. I know.

"Gee." Honda deadpanned. "I wonder if he's got a bad hand?"

"I'm gonna say yes." Yugi agreed.

"No argument here." I added on.

Jounouchi stared at his hand for a moment before Zigfried began to taunt again.

"You're beginning to sveat!" Zigfried commented good naturedly. "Is the molten lava getting to you or is it something else?"

Molten….? I shook my head. It's not real lava! It's not real lava! Kaiba would have a lawsuit if that were the case! That lawsuit would probably be from me… I shook off the thoughts again and focused on the duel. This fake volcano wouldn't get me!

Jounouchi, growling, played a card face down and ended his turn. It seemed that was all he could do. Zigfried, still awfully excited, started his turn with Graceful Charity. I watched him draw three cards then pick two from his deck then finally, to end his turn, he placed one card face down. Neither of them had monsters! This was interesting… Maybe he was egging Jounouchi on to attack him or something. I didn't like it.

Jounouchi was quick to laugh at how Zigfried couldn't summon a monster. The other man wasn't offended, he only glanced at the camera facing the duel, then checked his watch. I checked my own, seeing it strike directly on the hour.

Just as Jounouchi drew a card, pillars of the liquid pretending to be lava shot out of the pool around us. The shoots behind Zigfried shot flames nearly to the ceiling. The temperature jumped probably five to ten degrees! I gave a shriek of fright moving to cling to the closest person.

"Why don't you turn down the flames?!" Honda's voice was loud in my ears; I must have been clinging to him.

"One small problem!" Mokuba barked back. "This isn't part of the attraction!"

"That's not funny!" Ryuji snapped. "Especially for Christine!"

I simply clung to Honda even tighter, lowering my head so that all I could see was his brown jacket. I couldn't see the duel but I was content.

The sounds of the duel could just barely hit me from where I had hidden inside Honda's jacket but I refused to look up. As long as I couldn't see the pillars of flame, I wouldn't panic!

Hopefully…

My window in the duel was the complaints of my friends.

"He's not even gonna summon a monster?!" Honda gasped.

"Whatever Zigfried's strategy is, I don't get it." Anzu mused.

"What strategy?" Ryuji huffed.

Not being able to see, I could only assume he was doing something weird. He didn't play a monster… He really was trying to trick Jounouchi into something.

The blond must have been really mad as his next shout was able to hit my ears.

"I don't know if ya noticed but the duel's right here!" Jounouchi shouted over to Zigfried. "You could at least have the courtesy to look at me when I'm about to kick your butt, wise guy!"

I couldn't hear Zigfried's response as the smooth accent was lost in the chaos. Jounouchi's barks in rebuttal were heard but not him.

"Don't listen to him!" Honda shouted.

There was silence again until there was a loud explosion. Hesitantly, I peeked out from Honda's jacket. The pillars of fire had gone away, to which I was thankful, so I pulled my face away completely. Ginzo was now on the field and had just attacked Zigfried. The suave man now looked man, eyes glaring right at Jounouchi. "That's showing them, Jounouchi! You da man!"

Honda's excited gesture nearly made me fall over. I let go of him and worked to calm myself again.

"I think I've embarrassed you enough for now. So go ahead, Ziggy."

Zigfried really didn't like that… I was now able to hear the man's response.

"You ver much better off when I vas ignoring you." Zigfried practically hissed. "But zat's over! Because now you've gotten my attention!"

That didn't sound good. "So, not only will I defeat you, but I'll send you down in flames. Unt it all begins now!" Zigfried pulled a card from his deck to begin his turn and I knew he had pulled a good card from the smile on his face. "Zis card should look familiar; it's ze same one I used to devastate the last two fools." Uh oh…

The card was called 'Ride of the Valkyries' and the moment he played it the pillars of fire returned. Immediately frightened, I gripped onto Anzu this time. She gripped me in return like she was keeping me away from the flames. I couldn't hear the duel because of the loud flames exploding around me but I could faintly hear the sounds of… horses?

"Oh no!" Yugi's cry hit my ears because of my increased closeness. "One more attack and he's done!"

Not this early! I wanted to scream at Jounouchi to do something but another pillar of flame burst up just as I raised my head, lowering me into submission.

"Oh man!" Anzu and Honda gasped.

"Jounouchi lost the duel!"

There was a moment of pause before Yugi's tone changed completely. "Jounouchi's still in!" I peeked my head around, fighting off the panic, to try and see what had happened. The face down card Jounouchi played earlier had flipped up now. Did it give him enough life points to survive the attack? I assumed so if he was still in the duel.

Just then, the heat shut off. The loud pillars of flame had died down so I felt safe enough to lift my head again. The horses were gone now and Zigfried was defenseless. Anzu released me as she gave a sigh of relief.

"Finally, the heat's off." Anzu sighed, moving to keep a hand one me just in case there were any relapses.

"I'd hate to see the gas bill." Honda said and I cracked a smile, that would be an expensive bill.

Mokuba glanced over at me then over to the tracks of the attraction.

"I should check with Seto and see what's up." Mokuba announced.

One of the carts returned and whisked him off. There was no stopping him was there.

"You ok, Christine?" Ryuji asked. "That was a lot of flame…"

I gave an attempt at a playful shrug.

"I'm ok." I replied. "Not looking at it made it easy to avoid another incident."

"Let's just hope this ends quickly before it starts again." Honda breathed.

"Agreed. I'm gonna be real mad if that happens."

I took a quick breath, calming myself. I may be in a fake Volcanic Pit but I was ok. I was doing well for being near a large pillar of fire for the past few minutes. I could last a little while longer. I opened my eyes to focus on the duel, for real this time!

Jounouchi started his turn by playing Swordsman of Landstar and going to attack Zigfried directly. The man countered by playing a trap card, Frikka's Mediation, stopping his attack immediately at the cost of removing a monster from the graveyard. The blond then played a card face down to end his turn.

Zigfried started his own turn by playing something I immediately didn't like. Nibelung's Treasure allowed Zigfried to pull Nibelung's Ring from his deck and play it on Jounouchi's side of the field as well as drawing five new cards. It stopped Jounouchi's Swordsman from attacking while letting him draw two cards per draw phase. What was he planning? Then the goddesses came out: one with dark blue hair, another with long pink hair, and the last one with short blonde hair. Oh boy… My friend Austin at home used those three in his deck and it wasn't pretty what they did to an opponent's deck.

"Now let the fun begin with the Goddess Skuld!" Zigfried called and the dark blue haired goddess lifted her staff. "Activate your Scepter of Revelation!"

A dark pink circle slid across the field and I knew this wasn't going to end well. "Each turn from now on, I'm able to see the top three cards in your deck unt rearrange them any which way I please." Jounouchi did so, showing his displeasure with the flick of his wrist to show his cards. Zigfried moved them with the middle card on the top of the deck while the first card went to the bottom and third card remained where it was. The Goddess Verdande's power then activated, letting Zigfried 'guess' the type of card that was on top and, if he was correct, Jounouchi had to play it in face down defense position. Zigfried guessed a monster and, to no one's surprise, he was correct, so Jounouchi was forced to play the card. Then finally, the Goddess Urd activated her power. If Zigfried guessed the identity of the monster that was on the field, it was automatically removed from play.

Everyone gasped as Panther Warrior was removed from play, his form lifting into the pink sky like design that Zigfried's cards created. "Aw, parting is such sweet sorrow."

"First he took out Jinzo and now it's Panther Warrior?" Yugi gasped.

"But those are Jounouchi's best monsters!" Anzu whined.

"Not anymore." Honda huffed helpfully.

I didn't say anything – nothing I could say would make anyone feel better – so I kept my eyes on the duel. Jounouchi went to start his turn but Zigfried's plan had more to it than just tearing Jounouchi's deck apart. Nibelung's ring's effect was explained to the blond and when he tried to get on with his turn, Zigfried jumped in again.

"I'm really getting tired of this." I huffed and Anzu nodded her head in agreement.

The Curse of Nibelung's ring activated once Jounouchi had drawn his second card. If he had drawn any monsters by the effect, he has to send it to the graveyard. Of course, Zigfried already knew which monster was there so he chuckled when Jounouchi sounded surprised.

This was what he had been planning for the entire duel.

But Jounouchi wasn't out just yet.

He activated Dangerous Machine Type Six, allowing him to perform different actions each turn based on what number he rolled. He didn't activate it, instead letting Zigfried move. His goddesses activated and Jounouchi lost Goblin Attack force to them. He then placed a card face down and ended his turn.

This next turn, Dangerous Machine Type Six rolled a three, letting Jounouchi regain the card lost by Nibelung's Ring. He summoned Sasuke Samurai in an attempt to attack him. Unfortunately, Zigfried prepared for that by playing Loge's Flame, stopping any monster with 2000 or less attack points can't attack. Jounouchi tried to get around this by playing Graceful Dice to boost the attack power of his monster but only rolled a three when he needed a five or a six to get enough points.

With Zigfried's turn, his goddesses activated again and Jounouchi lost Gearfried the Iron Knight. He was going to run out of monsters at some point. Zigfried then played Swan Maiden, letting him summon a Valkyrie from his hand and he chose the one with the blue hair…. What was her name again? I had no chance to think about it as her sword went flying towards the Sasuke Samurai. It was deflected by Jounouchi's Silver Dollar trap card, protecting any monster with less than 1000 attack points. Phew!

"I love it!" Jounouchi taunted. "A rich snob gets stopped by a measly dollar!"

Zigfried didn't seem too upset at being blocked, continuing to smile across the field. Jounouchi started his turn by activating his machine. It rolled a three again, giving him back his second drawn card. He then activated Roll of Fate. The number he rolls, the number of cards he pulls. Was Jounouchi going to try and use luck to win? This is going to be interesting.

Well… Luck was on his side for the moment as he rolled a six. I wish I could have seen his face as I could feel the smile all the way from back here. Giant Trunade would make me happy if I pulled it against these three divas. With it, he manages to get rid of Nibelung's ring, the goddesses, Loge's Flame as well as the face down card…. Wait, why did it flip up? "Hold on! That Trap Card should have been blown off the field!"

"Apple of Enlightenment automatically activates when it's taken off the field. Which allows me to draw one more card from my deck."

With the removal of Loge's Flame, Jounouchi is now in big trouble as Zigfried is now able to summon Valkyrie Brunhilde, the most powerful of them. For every Warrior and Dragon card on the field, she gains 300 extra attack points. I hated thinking it but… this wasn't going to last much longer.

Jounouchi then sacrificed his Swordsman of Landstar, freed from Nibelung's ring, to summon Maximum Six. Luck kicks in again when Jounouchi rolls a six and can add 1200 attack points to his monster's 1900, jumping it to 3100. The blond then plays another luck-based card, Star Blaster. By sacrificing Sasuke Samurai, he can roll a dice and can potentially summon a high-level monster. Luck strikes again with a five from the die. Since Sasuke Samurai had two stars and he rolled a five, he could summon a seven star monster! Red Eyes! I've missed that dragon!

Brunhilde had an annoying special ability that kicked in when Maximum Six attacked. She can avoid destruction by giving up 1000 defense points which she used both times Jounouchi's monsters attacked her. Zigfried took damage both times she would have been destroyed, lowering his life points to 100 points. It was so close! "You should have ended this duel when you had the chance!"

And here it comes.

Zigfried played Enchanted Sword Nothung and equipped it to Brunhilde, raising her attack points by 400; she now had 2800. Now she could take out Red Eyes! "According to the Legend of Nothung, it was the world's greatest Dragon slayer!"

"Say what?!"

With a swing of the sword, Red Eyes vanished into the pink sky like Jounouchi's other monsters. Zigfried also played Rainbow Bridge Bifrost. Brunhilde is now going to get 500 attack points for every monster Zigfried has removed from play. I didn't want to remember how many he got rid of over the course of the duel.

Jounouchi then played Compensation Mediation, another card reliant on luck. Zigfried picked two cards from his graveyard and shuffled them with Compensation Mediation. If Jounouchi picked his card, he was safe but if he didn't…

I thought too soon.

When Swan Maiden lifted, I knew it was over. Zigfried was a tough opponent.

Zigfried didn't stick around much longer after that so we all had a moment to step over the tracks to comfort Jounouchi. He was kneeling on the ground like the loss physically pained him. I felt bad, especially when Honda started talking.

"Big deal." Honda huffed. "So you blew the entire tournament on a lousy game of chance."

"I guess you must have just run out of luck." Ryuji added on.

"Na!" Anzu obviously tried to soothe. "Jounouchi wins his duel with talent, not with luck, guys."

"Oh…" Honda started again. "So Jounouchi didn't lose because he has no luck, he lost because he has no talent!"

Jounouchi was quick to pick himself up after that.

"So **that's** how you cheer me up?!" Jounouchi barked. "Then it's time for me to spread a little cheer of my own!"

Quickly jumping to cling to Yugi's shoulders, I moved out of the way so Jounouchi could chased Anzu, Honda and Ryuji around the rock platform. The three laughed as the blond chased them around and I couldn't help but laugh as well.

Ah, Jounouchi's temper. He'll one day get a hold of it.

**Ah... Poor Jounouchi. He's always getting picked on by everyone. Oh, yeah, Bakura?**

**Bakura: Hm?**

**Were you the one to take my donuts? **

**Bakura: *Starts to sweat nervously. Looks to Marik like he'll protect him.***

**Marik: *Glares profusely, refusing to help.***

**Bakura: No?**

**The questioning in your tone says otherwise... *Narrows eyes.***

**Bakura quickly makes a getaway with Robyn right on his heels. **


	9. Everybody was Kung fu Fighting!

**Hello again, everyone! I hope everyone is staying safe no matter where they are. This chapter was a fun one to write because of what happens. I hope you all enjoy it!**

***I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! I only own my OC, Christine. If you see something you recognize, I don't own that either.***

I had never been so excited to leave a place in my entire life until the moment we were climbing out of the cart to get out of the Volcanic Pit. If it were more sanitary, I'd be kissing the platform at the entrance, but it wasn't. Yugi's laugh at my excitement was easily brushed aside as I inhaled fresh air. I was knocked out of my happy mood by Jounouchi heaving a sigh.

"I was kicked out of the tournament by a guy with pink hair." Jounouchi moaned.

I gave a sigh of my own. He was still upset about this? And what did Zigfried's hair have to do with anything? Jounouchi's pride knew no bounds.

"Yeah, a guy with pink hair who is an expert duelist!" Honda retorted.

"I wanna be number one!"

Jounouchi gave a whine, sending exasperated tears every which way. Anzu wasn't having it, I could tell.

"Oh, will you grow up?" Anzu huffed. "Trust me, there'll be other duels."

"You're not the one who's a runner-up every year! That honor belongs to me!"

Being runner up was an honor? My face must have contorted in confusion as Ryuji was joining with Yugi in laughing.

"He's got a point." Honda sighed.

"Think of it this way." Yugi said after he calmed down his laughter. "In the end, every match you lose just helps make you a better duelist."

"Then he should be the best by now."

I had to hold back a snort at that remark. Honda was so mean sometimes!

"Hey!" A familiar voice called out and we all turned around.

Professor Hawkins was racing into the loading bay, practically gasping for air. How far had he run to get here? "Yugi! It's your Grandfather!"

"What's wrong?" Yugi asked, his voice raising in pitch from obvious concern.

"Where is he?" Jounouchi asked, pulling himself out of his own misery.

"Did he make it to a doctor?" I asked. "Or at least the Medical Center?"

"He was there…"

Professor Hawkins then recounted the story of how he was with Grandpa at the Medical Center but, as he was searching for the doctor that was helping them, he got distracted by Rebecca's duel that was playing on the TV. There was no fault in that; he was cheering for his granddaughter, no shame in that. When he got back to the room with the doctor, he was gone! "I just wish I hadn't been distracted…"

"Don't sweat it!" Jounouchi told him. "I'm sure Gramps is fine!"

"But he was barely able to move a muscle! He couldn't possibly have gotten out of bed."

Everyone gave a hum at that.

"Maybe… someone came and helped him?" Anzu suggested.

"Yeah but who?" Ryuji asked.

"Perhaps his secret admirer!" Honda teased but I hit him before he could laugh about it.

"Not funny, Honda." I deadpanned. "Be serious."

"What?! Are you saying Gramps is unattractive?!"

I simply glared at him more, flicking my eyes to Yugi in a quiet reminder that he was still here. Honda gave no sign of apologizing.

"Come on." Ryuji was our voice of reason at the moment. "We need a plan, guys. He may be in real trouble."

"You got a point there." Jounouchi agreed. "He does have the worst luck of any of anyone I know."

Was that supposed to make Yugi feel better?! I was gonna snap but Yugi's slight dip of the head stopped me. Instead, I stepped over to settle a hand on his shoulder and leaned down.

"He's gonna be ok, Yugi." I whispered to him. "I promise."

There was a moment of nothing as Yugi seemed to take in my words. After that moment, he finally lifted his head.

"You're right." He replied. "Thank you."

I gave a smile before hugging him gently. When I let go, the rest of the gang told him that Grandpa was going to be just fine, as well as his girlfriend. I whacked Honda again for the comment.

We sent Professor Hawkins to cheer for us at Rebecca's next duel as well that we'd be there as soon as we could with Grandpa. We then split up to search the park for any sign of the man.

I dashed through the little water section of the park, dodging low flying objects the entirety of the time. My heart was beginning to race from worry. Where had Grandpa gone? Who would think about taking him? I didn't want to bother Mokuba, or even Kaiba, about this as they already had that hacker to worry about. I continued on my hunt, only stopping when an announcer's voice lifted over the park.

_'Attention, Kaiba Land guests: A short, stocky, elderly gentlemen in overalls and a black headband has been separated from his loved ones. If anyone has lost a Grandpa, he's waiting for you at the Main Gate.'_

Grandpa! That description matched perfectly! I skidded to a stop, just barely missing a little girl happily munching on an ice cream cone, and turned around. It wasn't a far run to the main entrance and Yugi was there already.

"Yugi!"

I stopped next to him, gasping for air. "You hear that announcement?"

"Yep! And I guess everyone else did too!"

I managed to look up and saw Jounouchi and Honda dashing over as well. The racing footsteps behind me said Ryuji and Anzu were there as well.

"How many elderly gentlemen with overalls do you guys know?" Jounouchi teasingly asked.

"One!" We all cheered.

"The only problem is he's not here." Honda huffed, crossing his arms.

"Good point." Jounouchi hummed. "You think we're at the wrong gate?"

"The announcer said he was at the Main Gate." I retorted. "This is the only Main Gate here; the other one is for special guests only."

Both Jounouchi and Honda nodded their heads. He should be here…

"Hey!" Anzu suddenly spoke. "Check that out!"

We all turned and I tilted my head at the sight of a piece of paper with pandas on it tied to the claw of Blue Eyes. What the heck was that about?

"I wonder if Grandpa put it there." Yugi mused.

"But why leave it?" I huffed. "Couldn't he have just stuck around?"

There was no answer to that at the moment so we all just crowded around Yugi, who rolled open the small piece of paper. On the other side was the layout of the main stretch of the park with each small box labeling a restaurant of a shop. It was mostly grey, the labels removed, but one of the boxes had a red 'x' on it.

"X marks the spot, huh?" Anzu quoted

Ryuji suddenly stood up straight. I straightened as well, looking to him.

"I don't like the look of this." He mused. "Why would Yugi's Grandfather page us to come here, run and hide, and then leave us a map so we can find him?"

"What are you saying?"

"That someone's set a trap for us."

I felt Yugi flinch at the words. The poor boy has been through enough with his Grandfather being bait for traps. While the boys argued about whether or not to go through with the trap, I settled my hand on Yugi's shoulder again. There was no need for words as Yugi immediately nodded his head.

If there was a trap, we'd have to spring it.

We followed the map further into the shopping district, Yugi and I in the rear of the group.

"Let's just hope he's ok!" I heard Honda shout with no context.

"He'd better be." I then heard Yugi hiss.

Holy crap… Yugi could be really scary if he wanted to… I mentally put pissing Yugi off on my list of things to never do ever.

Ryuji turned the corner first then stopped at the second set of doors. We all stopped when he proclaimed it to be the one.

"He's in a Chinese restaurant?!" Honda growled.

"You mean… while we were running around like lunatics, Grandpa was eating Won-ton soup?!" Jounouchi added on.

I wanted to say something about how Grandpa may not have been involved but… I was angry at the wild goose chase he led us on. I had no opportunity to speak as Yugi stepped up to the door of the Chinese restaurant and opened it.

"Grandpa?!" Yugi called. "Are you in there?"

There was a moment of silence inside the dark room before a sudden gong sound. It wasn't the kind I was used to – the one you hear at the end of Bohemian Rhapsody – so it made me jump nearly out of my skin. The lights then suddenly turned on and the entirety of the room was revealed.

It had to have been the tallest Chinese restaurant I had ever seen! It went on and on, higher and higher. On the ceiling lay a large Asian style dragon covered entirely in gold. Everyone's eyes were as wide as dinner plates. While I was amazed, was this really the best time to be doing this? And, of course, Jounouchi and Honda were immediately entranced by the food.

"We're just in time for lunch!" Honda gasped.

"And talk about all you can eat!" Jounouchi added on.

The two dashed over to eat the lot of it but were stopped when a familiar voice called out from above.

"Easy, cowboys!" The voice snapped. "I didn't see you two on the guest list!"

We all looked up to see Vivian, standing on the railing of the highest level of the restaurant. I should have found myself concerned for her safety but… I found myself too annoyed to care.

"Vivian led us here?" Honda asked aloud.

"But why?" Yugi asked.

"Because she's nuts?" Anzu deadpanned, leaving me having to hold onto my laughter. "As if you couldn't tell?"

"I'm with Anzu." I replied, watching with my friend as the woman did Kung fu moves while balancing on the railing.

"Hey!" Jounouchi snapped. "Come down here and tell us what's going on!"

"Fine!" Vivian snapped back.

I was immediately concerned when she leapt off the railing and started to fall towards the floor. So concerned, my body nearly went to try and use my powers to cushion her fall. Then I noticed how slow she was falling. Straightening up and tilting my head, I tried to see what she was doing.

"Look, guys!" Ryuji's gasp made me lose focus and turn my head to where he was pointing. "Vivian's got a little helper!"

There was an older man holding tightly onto a rope, moving it so it was smooth and steady. So that was how Vivian was coming down to the ground. He noticed us watching and immediately blushed. Wait a minute…. Was that…?

"Grandpa?" Yugi called gently. "Wait, what are you doing in here?"

"Ah…" Grandpa's voice came out of the man's mouth. "I can explain…"

In his movement, he let go of the rope and Vivian came screaming back to Earth. In a fall that obviously hurt, Vivian lay there for a second before popping back up.

"You nimrod!" She snapped at him. "You had one simple job!"

"Gimme another chance! I'll get it next time!"

We all stood there for at least a minute in shock or amazement, I wasn't sure which. I had no idea what was going on anymore. I ended up just blocking a lot of it out. "That's why I led you kids here."

"And turned his back on his own grandson!" Honda huffed to Jounouchi and me.

"Hey, I heard that!"

"We were so worried, Grandpa!" I called to him. "And look how you repay that! Didn't you even think about how Yugi would feel if you just up and vanished!"

I gave a huff, turning my head away and shutting my eyes. "I'm utterly ashamed." There was a whine at that.

"And to think…" Jounouchi also gave a whine with his words. "I once looked up to you… You forgot what's important… You forgot the Heart of the Cards!"

"He's right, Gramps…" Yugi's voice was so soft it broke my heart.

Grandpa was silent at the criticism and I opened my eyes to see his watering.

"What have I done?" Grandpa whimpered. "I'm sorry."

"So that's how it's gonna be?!" Vivian suddenly interjected. "Have it your way!"

I could only watch as Vivian jabbed Grandpa in the back and he immediately fell back to the floor, cradling his back.

"Not again…."

That was when Vivian issued her ultimatum. She'd help Grandpa's back if Yugi won a duel against her. She didn't add on a condition if he lost but I didn't have time to consider it as Yugi roughed me up a bit.

"Christine!" The blond snapped. "Could you do something?!"

I looked over to Grandpa, seeing him hunched over on the floor, obviously in pain. I wished I could say I did but… I didn't I shook my head.

"I've never taken care of a thrown out back before." I replied. "I don't have any of my supplies either."

Jounouchi growled in what I assumed was frustration. I was sorry I couldn't help; I felt kinda useless. There was then a soft grip of my fingers. I looked down to see that it was Yugi. Was it my turn to be comforted? Giving him a soft smile, I returned the grip. I was ok.

Yugi then gave control over to Yami, who charged over to stand on one of the tables just as Vivian was. Just as he did so, she gave the losing condition: if he lost, they had to go on a date. There was a flare of jealousy but it seemed to have been absorbed by Anzu before it could take root.

"All right!" She snapped, scaring me slightly. "That does it! I've heard just about enough out of you, tuts! Get it through your head! Yugi doesn't like you and he never will!"

The three guys and I looked at each other and then back to Anzu. We all were a bit shocked at the amount of anger she just displayed. I thought I was supposed to be the angry one around here?

"Alright, just breathe." Jounouchi said gently.

When Yami accepted the challenge, Anzu snapped her head towards me. "And why are you accepting this?!" I stepped back, lifting my arms in surrender.

"Ahahaha…." I laughed awkwardly. "I'm used to him accepting strange bets and bargains?"

The answer didn't mollify her so I gave another awkward laugh.

"You should be angrier about this!"

I gave her a playful wink.

"Believe me, Anzu, you are angry enough for both of us."

My friend gave an animalistic growl so I took her by the shoulders and walked her into the restaurant, settling at a spot where we could watch the duel at a good angle. She was still fuming so I leaned over to her. "There's no point in being jealous if you already know the outcome." The anger immediately faded on her face and she gave smile.

"I love that."

I gave a quiet giggle and we turned to watch the duel.

It didn't take long for the boys to find the food after that. They cleaned out plate after plate of food. I had a reasonable amount but still! Those guys were absolute pigs! In annoyance, Anzu threw a stuffed panda at them. "How could you be eating now? Yugi needs us out there!"

"He doesn't need us yelling in his ear to win!" Jounouchi immediately countered, going back to eating.

"Now relax!" Honda added on. "And try the chicken!"

I tried not to laugh at the annoyed face Anzu gave then.

"What kind?" She asked.

"Sesame!" The boys exclaimed back.

The Sesame chicken was indeed good; I had gone back three different times for it.

"Hey, guys…" Ryuji's voice knocked them out of their happy conversation. "Things aren't looking too good for Yugi."

We all looked up to see Vivian drawing her next card. It was the same card that let her summon Dragon Lady against Rebecca! Oh boy. She then played Lightening Saber, increasing her attack by 300 points. What made me mad was when she attacked, Dragon Lady destroyed Dark Magician as well as hit Yami for 1400 points.

"How did she attack twice?!" Jounouchi managed without choking on his food.

"Her sword." I simply said while Vivian gave the full explanation.

"Bullshit!"

Yami retaliated by playing Big Shield Gardna in defense mode as well as a card face down. While Gardna had a lot of defense points, it wasn't enough to hold off Dragon Lady.

"Even if Yugi loses…" Honda's voice cut through my concentration. "…at least he gets a date."

My eyebrow twitched at that. Really? Did Honda really not remember? Thankfully, Anzu was my anger translator.

"You do remember that his girlfriend is sitting right there, right?!" Anzu snapped back.

There was a moment of silence and then a gasp.

"Oh no!" Jounouchi gasped. "I totally forgot!"

"Yugi, you can't lose!" Honda cried out as well.

"Took them long enough." Ryuji sighed. "You two need to remind these dimwits more often."

I gave my own sigh.

"He's not a fan of big acts of PDA, doesn't want to embarrass Yugi." I replied, giving a shrug with one hand filled with a plate. "We simply prefer being in a quiet spot."

"Understood. Understood."

The two of us looked back to the duel just as Dragon Lady attacked Big Shield Gardna. Just as I expected, he was destroyed easily. Yami and tried to protect him with Mirror Force but Vivian stopped its activation with Snowfall Sword. Now he had nothing to protect his life points! It also didn't help that Vivian then played a card that increased Dragon Lady's attack points by 1200 at the cost of placing four dragons in the graveyard. She could now wipe him out!

The sound of Kuriboh made me smile though. That puffball could make any situation better.

"How dare you ruin my victory with that!" Vivian whined. "Just you wait until next turn! Just you wait!"

"There is no next turn." Yami replied back with a smile.

"But why?"

"You're about to find out! Cause I'm ending this right now!"

Yami started his comeback with Skilled Dark Magician and I immediately knew what he was gonna do. I gave a squeal of excitement. He then spent the next minute playing spell card after spell card to light up the spell counters. First, he played Pot of Greed, then Emblem of Dragon Destroyer and finally, Monster Reincarnation. With all three spell counters glowing, Yami could summon Dark Magician and fuse it with the Buster Blader he had placed in his hand to summon Dark Paladin. Thankfully, Dark Paladin gained 500 attack points for each dragon in both players graveyards and Vivian just sent four away. Oh, how sweet Karma was. With a large blast, Vivian's life points dropped to zero and secured Yami's victory.

The gang and I immediately jumped to our feet, cheering wildly at our friend. Yami didn't immediately switch back like I thought he would, telling Vivian himself that Grandpa was waiting. I popped over to see what was up but I immediately regretted it when he peeked under his bangs at me.

"What?" I huffed, crossing my arms.

"No jealousy?"

I huffed again, lifting my chin with pride.

"Nope! Not even a little bit!"

The tilt of his chin down and the lift of his eyebrow told me he didn't believe me at all. It made me sigh. He could see through me so easily! "Fine. A little bit."

"Ah ha… I see…"

"But Anzu was angry enough for both of us and I knew you were going to win so why bother?"

"I'm so proud."

The hum at the end of the sentence made me blush. I tried to fight it off by crossing my arms even tighter across my chest.

"As you should be."

There was a gentle laugh, a peek to see if anyone was looking, then gave me a quick kiss. It was barely even a peck before he skipped off, switching back with Yugi before I could even blink. As usual, I stood in place, shell shocked for a moment. Ryuji's voice woke me up.

"Sooooo…" Ryuji hummed. "What was that, Christine? Did he consider it quiet enough?"

The blush returned and I gave a whine of annoyance.

"Shut up, Ryuji!"

It took a few minutes to get Grandpa back on his feet – as well as my blush to finally go away – but we were finally on route to Rebecca's duel. It was in the small village, right? There were a couple of wrong turns but we eventually made it. From what I could see, Leon was holding strong while Rebecca only had 100 points left but she did have a really big dragon; if Kaiba had anything to show me, it was that dragons were very helpful in a lot of situations. Gasping, we all moved to stand next to Professor Hawkins.

"Rebecca!" Yugi called.

The girl turned around, bright smile lighting up her face.

"You showed up!" She cried.

"Of course we did!" Jounouchi added on.

"Hey, Beck!" Honda cheered.

"You go girl!" Anzu and I cheered.

"Yeah!" Ryuji whooped at the end.

"Thanks, guys." Rebecca quietly thanked before returning to the duel.

Rebecca ordered her Diamond Head Dragon to attack, destroying Leon's ogre like monster. I had to say, Leon's monsters looked really cool! I couldn't remember them very well but I liked what I was seeing. She ended her turn by playing a card face down. I figured she'd have something strategic up her sleeve and I hoped it worked.

Leon's move threw me off as well as Rebecca. He played Gold Moon Coin, making him give up the cards he had left to Rebecca while he drew new ones to replace them. He apparently had a card that could have won him the duel already but he considered it too risky a move so he had another idea. Leon then played One hundred Year Awakening, destroying the Marie the Fallen One that had been trapped on his side of the field; it has most likely been there since the beginning of the duel. He sacrificed his Curse of Thorns to play his Thorn Princess, who emerged from the purple flames. She apparently could also control one of Rebecca's monsters as if it were Leon's! Oh no!

The ending of the duel came real quick with that. I felt bad, we had only just arrived and we had to see that. It must have been even worse for Rebecca.

"Good game." Yugi simply said.

"Yeah, that wasn't half bad for a couple of kids." Jounouchi tried to tease.

"Kids that can out duel you!" Honda teased back, making Jounouchi both embarrassed and angry.

Rebecca turned away from Leon and I could see the tears coming. I decided to give her some slack, she deserved it for how well she did today. I tapped gently on Yugi's back and he understood what I meant. He leapt over one of the buildings to walk up to her. It didn't take long for the tears to fully arrive, leaving me having to fight off some of my own.

"Must she be so dramatic?" Grandpa asked and the tears instantly vanished.

"Look who's talking!" Jounouchi, Honda, Anzu and I all shouted.

"Who me?"

"Does this sound familiar?" Jounouchi taunted. "My back hurts someone help me!"

"Oh I'd like to see you duel in 50 years!"

* * *

I had been seated in the living room after a light dinner with the rest of the gang as we all decompressed from the long day of dueling. Rebecca was quiet most of the time, most likely going through all of the ways she could have won her duel against Leon in her head. I gave her a sympathetic glance but knew she probably didn't want any pity.

When it got late, the gang decided to hit the hay. I would have followed except Rebecca called me.

"Christine?" She called gently.

Her head was lowered slightly but I could still see her eyes.

"Yes, Rebecca?" I replied, tilting my head. "Can I help with something?"

"Could you… could you answer some questions?"

I didn't see any trouble with this so I smiled at her.

"Go fetch a brush."

Rebecca now looked confused. "Let me practice braiding on you while we talk. Little less awkward." Rebecca stared at me for a second before nodding. She dashed out of the room, coming back in quickly with a brush suitable for thick hair. "Ok. Sit here!" The two of us adjusted so that we were seated in a position that Rebecca was slightly lower than me but not seated on the floor. I brushed her hair free of tangles while she gathered her thoughts.

"How long have you known Yugi?"

"Over a year. He and his grandpa took me in after… circumstances brought me to Domino."

"Circumstances?"

Hmmm… That was where it got hard to explain. I didn't know the full story about how I got to this world nor how to explain what I did know. "Did you move to Domino? You've never mentioned your parents." I gave a hum but Rebecca kept talking. "I asked Yugi about it… but he got this weird look on his face and wouldn't say."

"My parents are gone."

Rebecca was silent for a moment, giving me the opportunity to start actively braiding her hair. "Yugi found out what happened to them recently so he's being nice and not spreading it around."

"I'm… I'm sorry…"

I gave a gentle squeeze of her shoulder before continuing to braid her honey blonde hair.

"You didn't know. I understand being curious."

The girl still seemed worried about offending me but I said nothing more about it. "You had more questions?" That knocked her out of her stupor.

"Are you and Yugi together together?"

That actually made me laugh. "It's not funny! It's a serious question!"

"I know! I know! It's just…"

I gave another loud laugh, nearly losing my hold on the braid. "Oh good grief. No, Rebecca. Yugi and I are very close friends."

"But…"

"But?"

She turned to face me, making me lose my grip on her hair. She looked frustrated with me being so calm.

"I saw you two! During my duel with Vivian! Arms linked and everything!"

Ahh… so she did see that. My laugh made her even more angry. "I just want an explanation! If you're not together then what?!" I eventually gave a sigh and reached over to the small photo album that I had been putting together with materials Meg gave me. I flipped to a page where I had put images of me and Yami on one side and another image with me and Yugi on the other. I handed her the album before leaning back into the couch.

If Rebecca was as smart as I knew she was, she'd pick it up immediately.

"What are the differences between these two images?"

Rebecca, after glancing over at me like I was insane, looked over the images like they were lines of code on her computer. She slid her finger along the protected images before she began to mumble.

"This one is more friendly while this one is decidedly more romantic. The expression on Yugi's face seems far more playful in this one. Though why…?"

Rebecca's head tilted in curiosity. Did she get it? She flicked her eyes between the two images. "Yugi's taller in this one." She pointed to the one with Yami.

"And?"

Rebecca stared even harder at the image.

"His hair… It has extra blonde strands that aren't in the other one."

"And?"

Her finger finally landed on the bright red eyes that Yami had and she lifted her own to me.

"Why are his eyes red?"

I gave a playful shrug.

"Why do you think?"

"I don't know. I'm asking you."

I straightened up to point at the Millennium Puzzle. Rebecca's frustrated expression faded. "The Millennium Puzzle?"

"Has your grandpa told you about it?"

"A little bit. When he was working on his theory for Duel Monsters, he was looking into the remaining evidence of a Pharaoh who…"

Rebecca trailed off, lifting her eyes to mine once more. "Who was sealed inside the Millennium Puzzle." My smile grew again. "No." I lifted my hand to my heart with a playful gasp.

"No?"

"It is impossible!"

"And why do you say that?"

Rebecca was at a loss for words. She gaped like a fish, opening and closing her mouth repeatedly. "Come on, Rebecca. Why is it impossible?"

"That would mean something is living inside him!"

"Well, living in his head more really. The two like to team up and embarrass me though Yugi threw him under the bus at the gala the other day; that was funny."

Rebecca stared at me as I laughed at the memory. "What you saw during your duel was the aftermath of me losing a bet." I looked at her seriously then. "Never engage in gambling with him. He always wins."

"What were you betting on?"

"When Jounouchi would finally voice his confusion on chaining."

Rebecca blinked. "You played Imperial Order but Scapegoat still worked. He tried to be smart but Yugi had to explain it; he probably still doesn't get it. He said two minutes, I said five and, sure enough, exactly two minutes later…" I gave a shrug. "It was that dang side eye that got me. Damn it! I was fine until he hit me with it!"

"Hit you with what?" Yami's voice appeared from the kitchen.

My boyfriend wasn't in pajamas just yet but he had a bowl and a spoon. Based on the cream on the lifted spoon, I assumed he had yoinked one of ice cream pints that we had. Rebecca said nothing, obviously now seeing the differences between Yugi and his other self.

"Ice cream, Yami? Really?"

"Yeah. Fight me, Mereret."

I burst into laughter. "What did I hit you with?" The laughter faded quickly.

"That side eye!"

He looked confused. "During Rebecca's duel with Vivian!" Remembrance finally flickered across his face as well as a bright smile.

"Oh yeah! When I made you join that bet!"

"Yeah that!"

Yami was now laughing, walking back towards the room Yugi and I shared. I gave him a playful huff as he walked away.

"You heading to bed soon?"

"In a little bit. Don't wait for me."

"Ok. Don't stay up too late, Mereret. I will come after you."

"Ok! Ok!"

There was another chuckle before he left the room. Once he was gone, I peeked over at Rebecca.

"Was that…?" Rebecca trailed away, not needing to explain further.

"Yep. That was him."

The girl blinked for a couple seconds before she began to nod her head.

"Now that I know the differences, I can't unsee them!"

I burst into laughter again. The way she said it made it unendingly funny. When my laughter faded again, I got to my feet.

"If that's all, I'm going to head to bed. Goodnight, Rebecca."

I made it nearly to the hallway to my room just as Rebecca spoke again.

"How come it's so easy for you to tell the differences?"

Hmmm… There were so many ways I could answer that question: I was there when he put the puzzle together, I have spent a lot of time with him… I eventually decided on the one that would make her gape like a fish again.

"I married him."

Her jaw dropped and I burst into laughter again. Using her silence, I skipped to bed and left her to get her answer elsewhere.

**I hope you all enjoyed! **

**Yami Bakura: ...**

**What? Got nothing to say? **

**Yami Bakura: *shakes his head***

**I don't trust you. **

**Marik: Does anyone really? **

**Yami Bakura: Shut up!**

**Marik: Case in point.**


	10. Wait, Why's She Wearing That?

**Hello again! I hope everyone is doing well, especially with how the world is right now. This chapter was something I had wanted to play with and, because they say the tournament is supposed to last a week, I wanted to add another day to this! **

***I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! I only own my OC, Christine. If you see anything you recognize, I don't own that either.***

I was annoyed when the alarm went off but quickly turned it off when Yugi made a groan. How could I have forgotten why I had the alarm in the first place?!

"Christine?" Yugi groaned sleepily. "What's going on?"

His eyes were fluttering between open and closed. He was probably only half-awake right now. Pure exhaustion was kicking the poor boy's butt.

"Nothing, Yugi." I replied softly, sliding a hand through his hair. "I just forgot to turn off the alarm last night. Go back to sleep."

Yugi hummed, his eyes fully closing again. It took a minute but the boy finally fell back asleep. I kept brushing his hair for an extra minute to make sure but the boy was definitely unconscious. "Phew." I breathed. "That was a close one."

Making sure I remained quiet, I tip toed around the room gathering everything I needed for today. I left quietly as well, saying a soft goodbye to the sleeping Yugi.

Anzu was waiting in the living room of our hotel room. Her stuff clutched in her hands as well. She gave a nervous smile.

"Ready for this?" Anzu asked.

"I was born ready, Anzu."

We ate a quick breakfast before we headed to the park. We made use of the large bathrooms in order to get ready for our crazy day. I was dreading this hairspray though. "Anzu, can I have some help?"

My friend laughed at my attempt to spray my hair the different color. She swiped the can from me and continued on in my stead.

"Man, Yugi is going to flip when he sees you."

I gave a shaky laugh.

"I kinda hope he doesn't. I'll never hear the end of it."

Anzu laughed again. She finished spraying my hair with quick stripes of the other colors before returning to her own readiness. It took about half an hour but by the end, we looked marvelous.

We were ready to have some fun.

Yugi:

Yugi faintly remembered waking up to the screeching of the alarm clock. He also remembered Christine's soft voice telling him to go back to sleep. There was nothing after that. When he woke up next, the room was empty and he could hear Jounouchi shouting in the next room.

"Christine?" He called.

There was no answer. Only the continued sound of Jounouchi shouting in the next room.

Yugi quickly got dressed and headed into the living room. The rest of the gang, including Rebecca, Professor Hawkins and Grandpa, were all there. "What's going on?"

"We can't find Anzu!" Honda quickly said. "We've looked everywhere!"

"Is she with you, Yugi?" Grandpa asked.

Yugi shook his head. If Anzu was gone as well...

"Have you all seen Christine?" Yugi asked.

Everyone glanced around the room like they had just noticed their other friend's absence.

"She's gone too?!" Rebecca cried.

"What the hell is going on?!" Jounouchi shouted.

The blond was doing one last search of the hotel room when Mokuba walked inside, looking oddly confused.

"What's going on in here?" The younger Kaiba asked.

"We can't find Anzu or Christine." Grandpa told him.

"It's like they vanished!" Ryuji added on.

Mokuba thought for a moment, giving Jounouchi the chance to come back into the room. The boy tapped his foot for a moment before an idea hit him and pulled his tablet out.

"Why don't we see if they entered the park?" Mokuba suggested. "Their ticket stamps would have a time on them."

There was a hum of excitement as Mokuba looked over the data on his tablet. After a few taps, he found something. "Here we go, Anzu and Christine entered the park about two hours ago."

"Why would they go to the park?" Professor Hawkins asked sagely. "There aren't any duels today..."

"Let's go find them!" Rebecca cried. "I'm sure they have a reason!"

Nobody argued with her and the gang quickly gathered themselves to head into the park. With Mokuba and Yugi at the helm, they entered the large amusement park with no clear plan except look for their friends.

"Any idea where they would go?" Honda asked.

"The park is huge!" Mokuba sighed. "They could be anywhere by now!"

"Then we best get looking!" Jounouchi cried.

That's what they ended up doing. They practically walked from one end of the park to the other, eyes peeled for Christine's identifiable blonde hair. While they didn't find her, they did end up finding Leon.

"Hey, guys!" The younger boy chirped. "What's brought you to the park today?"

"We're looking for Anzu and Christine." Yugi replied. "Have you seen them?"

Leon thought for a moment, bringing a hand to his chin. It wasn't long before he shook his head.

"Nope, can't say I have."

The gang sighed. "But I did hear Christine's voice not too long ago." That brought up their spirits.

"Where was she?"

Leon turned to point to the line headed up to an ice cream seller.

"She was over that direction but when I turned around, she wasn't there."

Her voice was there but she wasn't?

Yugi looked around and suddenly realized that many of the people meandering the park weren't dressed normally. They were dressed like... the contestants... He kept this thought to himself as Jounouchi suddenly spoke.

"Do ya know where they went off to next?" Jounouchi asked.

"I can't say for sure but I thought I heard something about a ride?"

"And knowing Christine, she'd want to go on the biggest one there was." Grandpa added.

The gang looked to Mokuba who simply pointed towards the large Blue Eyes ride nearly a quarter of the way across the park. It was exactly the thing Christine would want to ride.

They interrogated the man at the entrance to see if their friends had been there but the man shook his head.

"I haven't seen anybody like that." He replied politely with a shrug of his shoulders.

The gang sighed. "But lots of people are in costume. Do your friends do cosplay?"

"One does." Ryuji replied, looking to the rest of the gang.

"Then I bet she's dressed as one of the competitors. Isn't it the day for that?"

The man looked to Mokuba for the answer to that and the boy nodded.

"I thought it would be a fun addition to the tournament week and Seto agreed." Mokuba clarified. "People can dress up as the competitors of the tournament, Duel Monsters or anybody they want."

"Which means they could be dressed as anybody!" Jounouchi whined.

They quickly thanked the man before heading back into the park. With Jounouchi and Honda complaining the whole way, they eventually decided to stop at a small café to sit and have something to eat.

"They must be walking fast in order to evade us so quickly." Professor Hawkins sighed as he sipped his drink.

"Christine does walk fast when she's excited." Rebecca told her Grandfather. "You should've seen her when I pointed out that store the other day."

Yugi sighed as he took a bite out of his burger. Why would they leave without saying anything? Did they not want to be seen today?

"Mokuba!" Kaiba's voice suddenly cut through the silence.

The gang all looked up to see the CEO, wearing his white suit, walking over to them.

"Seto!" Mokuba cried, racing over to him.

"What are you doing?"

"I was helping Yugi find Anzu and Christine. They're in the park somewhere."

Kaiba was silent at that. He kept his eyes fixed on Mokuba but Yugi saw a twinge of something. Laughter? "Have you seen them?" The twinge faded at that.

"Why would I be actively seeking them out? I'm not their babysitter."

"Come on, Rich boy!" Jounouchi complained. "Have you at least seen them?"

"Even if I did, why would I tell an underdog like you?"

That made Jounouchi growl. It still didn't take long for Kaiba to rile him up. The CEO gave a short laugh before looking to Mokuba. "I'm headed back to the office. If something goes wrong, let me know."

"Right!" Mokuba chirped.

Jounouchi continued to growl as Kaiba walked away. Yugi watched Kaiba leave, thoughts fixed on the twinge he had seen. Kaiba wasn't telling them something.

After getting something to eat, the gang continued on their hunt around the park. It was nearly sunset when Jounouchi gave a loud sigh.

"I have no idea where they are!" The blond sighed.

"They may have gone back to the hotel by now." Ryuji sighed as well. "Should we head back?"

"Might as well." Honda agreed.

Yugi was about to agree when two female park goers left one of the shops and were quickly walking past them. They were in costume with one identifiable as Kaiba but the other one... Yugi figured that they were in a hurry because there was a show starting nearby soon but his other self quickly perked up.

_'Partner. Could I have control for a moment?' _

_'Huh? Uh... sure.' _

The Pharaoh took control, casually turned his head towards the two girls and called out the pet name of his girlfriend.

"Mereret." Yami huffed and the reaction was immediate.

The second cosplayer flinched, stopping dead in her tracks, then gave a loud sigh.

"We've been caught." The girl sighed and the gang realized it was Christine dressed as Yugi, school uniform and all.

"Ya should have expected it." Anzu's voice then appeared from the voice of the girl dressed as Kaiba.

"Yeah..."

Christine straightened and turned to face the gang with a cheeky smile. Instead of her green eyes, amethyst contacts greeted them. Her blonde hair had been covered in tri-colored hair spray so it was practically unidentifiable. Around her neck was an impressive copy of the Millennium Puzzle. "Hi, guys. Fancy seeing you here."

"Why are you dressed like that?!" Jounouchi barked.

"Hah? Meg and I heard about this and thought it'd be fun. Since she's not here to be Kaiba, I managed to get Anzu to do it."

All eyes turned to Anzu, who smiled nervously. "Any other dumb questions?"

"Did anyone else see you?" Ryuji asked.

Christine hummed, bringing a hand to her chin. Her now tri-colored hair shifted as she tilted her head.

"I saw Leon while we were getting ice cream but he didn't seem to see us. I blame the hair. Roland saw us and did a double take."

"Kaiba saw us..." Anzu added on.

"Yeah!" Christine burst into laughter. "Recognized us immediately! It was hysterical!"

"I knew he saw something!" Jounouchi growled. "Why didn't he say anything?!"

"We asked him not to."

"Why?!"

Christine pointed to her hair.

"This. Just... this..."

"It was an impressive set-up, let me tell you." Anzu added. "The bathroom reeked of hairspray when we were done."

Christine groaned, like she was remembering the smell of hairspray.

"I swear, it's still in my nose!"

She turned around and began to skip back into the park.

"Mereret... where are you going?" Yami huffed.

Christine turned back around. The different colored eyes were a definite shock when he was expecting her green ones.

"Anzu and I took pictures with some of the photographers. I was going to check them out."

Anzu gave a squeak before racing after Christine. "We'll catch up with you all later."

"Oh no!" Jounouchi barked. "We aren't leaving you alone!"

"Fine fine!"

After Christine and Anzu bought their pictures, they wanted to head back to the hotel. Nobody argued; they were tired from searching all day.

Yugi entered the hotel room while Christine was in the shower to grab his dueling deck so he and Jounouchi could play. Yugi made it a quick trip but the Pharaoh was caught on the soft singing coming from the bathroom. It was faint over the running water but he heard music and singing but just over it. Christine was singing along. He didn't know the song nor could he hear the words but he was frozen even as Yugi dashed out of the room, wanting to listen. The sound of it made the barest of memories return to his mind but they faded away just as they appeared.

After another minute, the water shut off. The music continued to play, slightly less covered up by the sound of water. That was the moment Yugi realized he was still in there and madly called him, not wanting to have any strange thoughts echoing in his head. The Pharaoh chuckled at the bright blush that most likely covered Yugi's face but did leave. Yugi came back an hour later, when he and Jounouchi were done playing, and crept into the room. "Hey, Yugi." Christine was sitting at the desk with the small computer in pajamas. Her hair was back to its blonde color but there were some darker stripes where the hairspray hadn't come loose yet. "Dueling with Jounouchi?"

"Yep! He's getting really good."

"He's gonna have to work a lot harder to be able to beat you."

Yugi chuckled and nodded at the words. "Hey, be honest with me, Yugi, how much hairspray do I have left in my hair?"

"Only a bit. Faint stripes here and there."

"Oh, that's ok."

Christine looked back to her computer, typed for a moment before closing her windows and shutting it down.

"Sending pictures to Meg?"

"Yep. She would appreciate seeing the fruits of her labor."

Christine then got to her feet, grabbing the brush that she had brought with her to the computer and sliding it through her hair a few times to make sure it is fully brushed. She made herself scarce as he got himself ready for bed but, before heading to sleep, she was asking him another question. "Hey, Yugi?"

"Yeah?"

"Was Yami in here when I was in the shower?"

Yugi's face was tomato red and his denial sent his voice at least four octaves higher. "Really?"

"Yep!"

There was a moment of quiet laughter from his partner's girlfriend/wife but she didn't tease him further.

"Ok. I believe you. I just could've sworn I felt something."

There was another moment of bright blushing before Christine ruffled his hair with a laugh before wishing him goodnight.

He should have thrown the Pharaoh under the bus, if only to get some payback for his bright red face.

**Thanks for reading! See you all next time! **


	11. Jealousy can drive you Mad

**Hi, guys! We have returned with a new chapter! I hope everyone is staying safe and healthy! These are some strange times we're living in. **

***I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! I only own Christine, my OC. If you recognize anything, it isn't mine.***

Thankful for the day off to recuperate from the main few rounds of the tournament, I was able to wake up before Yugi. I was apparently up before everyone as the hotel room was quiet when I peeked my head out. I didn't leave my room though so I shut the door again to get ready. I took another shower to try and get the rest of the infernal hairspray out and I seemed to have gotten the last of it with this. I dried my hair as quietly as I could, got dressed, then walked back into the room. It was just now eight in the morning and Yugi wasn't up yet. He must be exhausted. I felt bad having to wake him up but he needed to be up, today was the day.

"Yugi…" I said gently, rocking his shoulder. "Yugi…"

The boy groaned, turning his head further into the pillow. "Yugi!" There was a noise that immediately said he was annoyed. It made me laugh. "I've never seen you so grouchy! Yuuugi…" There was another groan and he finally looked up. He looked tired. I slid a hand through his hair, laughter fading for the moment. "Did you not sleep well?" Yugi shook his head.

"I slept really well but…" He gave a sigh. "Just a lot on my mind."

I gave a sad hum. I hated it when there wasn't a lot I could do. Yugi then gave a smile. "Thank you for checking in. I appreciate it."

"Not much else I can do. Not exactly a lot of people I can freeze to the wall."

That at least made Yugi laugh. He straightened up and stretched his arms over his head. I laughed when something in his back popped and he groaned in pain.

"I feel like Grandpa."

"At least you can still walk straight."

"True… What time is it?"

I glanced at the clock, not answering. Yugi took that as 'look himself' and I got the desired reaction. "Ack! I gotta get up!" The boy scrambled out of bed, jumping to get ready. I gave a laugh before climbing to my feet and walking out of the room to get breakfast ready.

There was a smattering of people up now but they were mostly eating the cereal that we had bought to hold people over. I was craving eggs and French toast and I thought others might have wanted them so I hopped into the kitchen. As I cooked, more people got up, including Rebecca, who greeted me at the entrance to the kitchen. She was excited about Leon facing against Zigfried in the final round but her words stopped when a set of arms wrapped around my waist. It took a quick glance to know who it was.

"What are you doing?"

"Helping." My ridiculous boyfriend hummed from his spot on my shoulder.

I flicked my eyes back at him, narrowed slightly. He looked awfully smug for some reason.

"Helping, you say? With what may I ask?"

"I'm helping Rebecca."

I raised my eyebrow now.

"Helping Rebecca? What on earth are you… Oh."

I peeked over at Rebecca to see her eyes narrowed and flicking between us. He was testing her ability to tell the difference between him and Yugi. It took less than 10 seconds for her to realize what was going on.

"Oh yeah! I forgot!" She gasped.

Yami gave a chuckle before leaning in to press a kiss to my cheek and giving Yugi control again as he stepped away. I rolled my eyes, continuing to cook the eggs.

"Before you ask." Yugi told Rebecca. "Yes, he does that a lot."

"Does he like to pick on her?"

"Oh yes. I think he likes to send her smartassery back at her and make her blush in the process."

"Oh… I see. Does he usually succeed?"

"From what I've noticed, yes."

A blush was starting to form at my ears at the talk. I was right here! I gave a loud sigh.

"Yugi… Rebecca…" I drawled. "Another word from either of you and I will beat the both of you with this spatula."

There was an 'eep' from both Yugi and Rebecca and they raced out of the kitchen. The blush was still spreading across my face even with them gone. I really was easy to make blush and not even Yami had to be the one talking!

Once we had finished eating, we all made our way back into the park and into the Kaiba Dome, where the final round would take place. It was all so very dramatic how Roland was introducing Zigfried and Leon but, frankly, I was getting annoyed with all the metaphors he was pulling out. When the roof of the Kaiba Dome opened, I was surprised with the sound of an approaching helicopter. Shouldn't they not be allowed in the park airspace?

…And why was Kaiba hanging from a ladder from it?!

"What's he doing here?!" Jounouchi whined.

"Just dropping by?" Yugi answered, a questioning tilt to his voice.

Dropping? Really, Yugi?

"Yeah but why?" Mokuba retorted. "Seto wasn't scheduled to be here."

Kaiba then dropped from the ladder, hitting the platform of the Dueltek still about 20 feet below. That was a long way down, Kaiba! Take some care with your ankles! He didn't seem to be in any pain as he straightened up and called out.

"Stop the duel!" He bellowed. "As President of Kaiba Corp, I declare this match invalid!"

The audience made their displeasure clear immediately. There were calls of 'What?!' and 'Boo!' and 'You can't do that!' What was going on to make the match invalid?

"He can't rip us off like that!" Jounouchi whined again.

"I think he just did." I told him, only receiving a growl in reply.

Kaiba then turned around to face Leon.

"As a result of a disqualification, the winner of this duel is Leon Wilson!" Kaiba told the crowd.

I should have been happy for Leon but… I was still confused about what was happening. Leon seemed to be feeling the same way I was.

"Any particular reason for this?" Zigfried's voice was cool even from where I was sitting. "Humor me."

"You broke your tournament contract. By entering under a false name. Zigfried Lloyd… Or should I say Zigfired von Schroeder! Of the Schroeder Corporation!"

Schroeder Corporation? What was that?

"Schroeder Corps?" Yugi asked aloud. "Wasn't that an old gaming company or something?"

Grandpa turned to look at Yugi, who had turned around to ask the question.

"Well, actually, it still is." Grandpa replied. "You just don't hear much about it anymore. Once Kaiba Corps became number one, everyone sort have forgot about the Schroeders."

So this was some sort of personal vendetta? I could imagine being angry about losing business but going to this extent? That seemed a bit much. Maybe I couldn't understand it. But all the strange occurrences all started to make sense. A rival of Kaiba Corps would want to make the tournament have a bad reputation so people would stop purchasing their merchandise.

"But since I'm a nice guy, I won't have you arrested for trespassing and fraud." Kaiba huffed, smile on his face. "On one condition, you get out of my life and take your bad hair with you. And mark my words, if your overpriced shoes step anywhere near me again, I'll destroy what's left of your pathetic company!"

Zigfried didn't seem to consider that a threat as he laughed at Kaiba's words.

"It looks like you've finally been exposed to the public for what you are." Zigfried's cheerfully said. "A complete coward."

Kaiba? A coward? Heck no! Where did he jump to that conclusion from? Mars? "The truth is you're afraid of my superior skills, so you're hiding behind a technicality instead of facing me. Unt now the whole world knows it! I don't blame you for throwing me out, Herr Kaiba, you know that if von this tournament and became the world champion, you would never vin that title back!" And you could beat Yugi? My eyebrow raised in suspicion. He was putting a lot of faith on himself to actually think he could do it.

Thankfully, Kaiba laughed.

"I'm throwing you out because I don't like you, not 'cause I'm scared of you."

Kaiba changed positions slightly, a very familiar smirk lighting up his face. "You know, I promised myself I wouldn't duel in this tournament, but since I have the chance to embarrass you, those plans have changed."

The audience seemed to like that idea based on the amount of cheers the words garnered.

"Kaiba's going to duel Zigfried!" Yugi gasped.

"Well…" Rebecca added. "There's never a dull moment!"

"Fine." Zigfried agreed. "But if I vin, I get to stay."

"And if you lose, you disappear, never to be heard from again!" Kaiba retorted.

Harsh on Kaiba's part but understandable. The two moved to the center of the platform and shuffled the other's deck. To decide who would go first, Zigfried flipped a coin. Despite winning, he let Kaiba have the first move. They then went to their positions. Leon came back down to the seats, still concerned about what was happening. Anzu told him not to worry, he'd get his chance to duel against Yugi. Jounouchi was quick to point out that, no matter how much he hated Kaiba, he hated Zigfried more.

Kaiba started the duel with his X-head cannon in attack mode then added two cards face down to end his turn. Zigfried drew his card, going on a monologue that annoyed Kaiba, but I heard the word 'Maidens' and I immediately froze. Did he draw what I think he just drew?

"Witness poetry in motion as I play Ride of the Valkyries!"

I knew it! He could now summon all the Valkyries in his hand! He apparently had three as Valkyrie Dritte, Valkyrie Erste and Valkyrie Zweite appeared on the field. Kaiba's cannon then suddenly exploded. What?! I apparently had missed a lot when I was hidden in my friend's clothing during his duel with Jounouchi. Apparently, Zweite's special effect means she can destroy a monster on summon… And Erste can banish it from play? And her attack power rises to that level? Dritte's was the least of my worries as she only gains 100 points for each banished monster, at least for now. When the goddesses showed up, that would become a problem.

"He summoned three monsters at once!" Jounouchi breathed to us.

And enough attack power to end the duel at once!

Thankfully for Kaiba, his face down card protected him. Negate Attack would ensure he lasted the turn and the Valkyries had to return to his deck!

…

Why weren't they leaving? It was the end of the Battle Phase! Zigfried's laugh made my eyes narrow.

"Thanks to zis card, they've added a second performance!"

What?! Valkyrie Zweite set off to attack again and I clutched onto Anzu's hand.

"What do you think you're doing?!" Kaiba barked.

"Vinning, of course! You see, Mischief of the Time Goddess allows me to skip your turn. Then I can pick up ver I left off! Viping out the remainder of your life points!"

The Valkyrie closed in but Kaiba had his other card ready. Magical Trick Mirror could take a card from Zigfried's graveyard and activate it as his own and, thankfully, Mischief of the Time Goddess was already in a prime spot. Now Zigfried's turn was skipped. This was getting really annoying. Who's turn was it again?

"He just bought himself a second chance." Jounoughi breathed, almost sounding amazed. "Don't mess this up, Rich Boy."

He started his counter attack by playing Z Metal Tank as well as Clone Dragon, which transformed into the Tank as well, giving it the same attack and defense points. Not having much else he could do, Kaiba ended his turn. I glared over at the Valkyries on Zigfried's field. How come they were still there? What was the deal? Zigfried retaliated by playing Valkyrie's Embrace then switching Valkyrie Dritte into defense mode. The moment the Valkyrie moved, Kaiba's original tank dissolved. Was it banished from the game as well? It must have been, that was Zigfried's M.O. Valkyrie Erste then moved in to attack the Clone Dragon, destroying it. Valkyrie Zweite then was ordered to attack, hitting Kaiba for 1600 points.

Kaiba didn't seem that upset. He simply brushed off his sleeve like there was something the Valkyrie left on him. Meg would have died to see it. She also would have laughed at his calling the Valkyries 'Girl Scouts'. Kaiba then played Pitch Dark Dragon as well as a card face down. Obviously, it was a trap. The dragon was easily destroyed by Valkyrie Zweite but the card then flipped up. It allowed them to summon a level four monster straight from their deck. Kaiba picked his Y Dragon Head. Was he preparing for the same monster he used against Yami in Battle City? Zigfried, of course, played another Valkyrie Dritte, who gained 200 attack points for the two banished monsters.

Everything went quickly then. Kaiba apparently played Pot of Greed and I was so caught up in the joke of 'What does it do' to realize that he had played a bunch of other cards after that. When I looked up at the duel again, XYZ Dragon Cannon was on the field and Kaiba's life points were slightly lowered. Oops… I guess I should pay better attention. Thankfully, nobody noticed my distraction. I was in the clear at the moment.

"Not only was he able to summon a really powerful monster to the field," Ryuji complimented, "he was also able to gain back 1500 life points!"

"This could be just the break Kaiba needed to make his comeback!" Grandpa breathed.

"Let's hope so." Yugi mumbled next to me.

Kaiba's Dragon Cannon attack, destroying one of Zigfried's Valkyrie Dritte. It lowered Zigfried's life points to 2500, just a little bit more than Kaiba's.

"That's my bro!" Mokuba cheered. "Always one step ahead!"

Zigfried must have heard the comment as his face morphed into something I had never seen before. I couldn't place what emotion it was and that was what scared me. I slid back in my chair a bit, hoping it would get me further away from it. The expression faded into a smile when he drew his next card. Nibelung's Treasure…

"Hold on a sec!" Honda gasped. "Isn't that the same card he used to do you in?!"

"That's it." Jounouchi acknowledged. "And it's not a fond memory."

Nibelung's Ring appeared on Kaiba's side of the field, sliding itself onto the Y Dragon Head part of the Cannon. "It gets worse, guys. Next, Kaiba has to draw two cards from his deck and if either one is a monster card, he has to remove it from the game!" Zigfried didn't make things much easier as he sacrificed his other Valkyrie Dritte to summon the Fortune Chariot, a card that made Jounouchi's life so difficult. Valkyrie Zweite could now lower her attack power and attack Kaiba directly, hitting him for 800 points of damage. Zigfried also was annoying by playing Mystical Space Typhoon to get rid of Kaiba's Soul Absorption. Now he couldn't replenish his life points with each card banished from the game. Sadly, he wouldn't get rid of Nibelung's Ring but I figured Kaiba would get rid of it somehow.

With Kaiba's next turn, the Ring's power was activated but no monsters were drawn, thankfully. He set a card face down and nothing else. There was nothing else he could do as the Ring also stopped the Dragon Cannon from attacking so he ended his turn. Zigfried immediately attacked with Valkyrie Zweite and her Fortune Chariot but Kaiba was ready.

Attack Guidance Armor redirected the attack to Valkyrie Erste but Woltan's Judgement automatically stopped his battle phase by him placing a magic card from his hand to the top of his deck. He was just going to get it right back! How annoying!

Then came the Goddesses.

"Oh no!" I gasped. "Not those three!"

"Those dames are nothing but bad news!"

"Yeah!" Yugi agreed. "He played them last time! They nearly destroyed your deck!"

This was going to be an exciting few turns.

Skuld activated her power and the look on Zigfried's face… He looked utterly terrified! What on earth could be… Oh… I think I knew what was underneath those cards. I leaned over to Yugi.

"May I indulge Yami with a bet?" I whispered.

Yami came out rather quickly with that.

"A bet, Mereret?" He asked, only just peeking at me. "I thought you were done making bets with me."

"I did say that but I have a good feeling with this one."

Yami looked back to the duel, where Zigfried was adjusting the three cards Kaiba was going to draw. "Indulge me?"

"Of course. What's the bet?"

I leaned in closer.

"What are the chances that all three of those cards were Blue Eyes White Dragons."

The smirk faded from Yami's lips and he looked back up to the duel. Kaiba was placing a monster in Defense mode. "Tick tock, Yami. He's about to guess the monster…." The Pharaoh actually looked conflicted for a moment.

"I don't know if I want to argue with you, Mereret. I think you're right but I'll take the bet for fun's sake."

I smiled and looked back to the duel.

"I predict the card you just played is your Blue Eyes White Dragon!" Zigfried called.

The defense monster flipped up to reveal Kaiba's iconic monster, the roar fading as it was banished from the game. There was a sigh from my boyfriend and he leaned in to whisper in my ear.

"How'd you do it?"

"The look on Zigfried's face said everything." I replied.

Yami gave a chuckle before straightening up again. "I win?"

"You win."

I gave a happy giggle but he continued talking. "This round at least." I groaned but there was a second of a chuckle before Yugi was given control again. When I looked up to the duel again, Blue Eyes was back on the field. He must have played Monster Reborn while I was distracted with the Blue Eyes that was send to the graveyard by the effect of Nibelung's Ring. The Dragon attacked the charioted Zweite but only got the chariot. Zigfried's life points still took a dip though.

It didn't last long as Zigfried then quickly removed another monster from Kaiba's deck; this time was Luster Dragon #2. He also played Griffon's Feather Duster. It destroyed every spell and trap card on his side of his field, including his goddesses, but he got back 500 life points for each one.

"He just got back everything that Blue Eyes took away!" Mokuba growled.

He also sacrificed his last two Valkyries to summon Brunhilde in defense mode. Oh boy, her again. Kaiba started his turn by discarding the monster Zigfried knew was there and attacked Brunhilde with Blue Eyes. Sadly, her special effect kicked in. By dropping 1000 defense points, she was invincible. With nothing else to attack with, Kaiba placed a card face down to end his turn.

Zigfried switched Brunhilde into attack mode then. But she's...! Uh oh… I forgot about her other effect. She gains power from Dragons and Warriors! As well as the Enchanted Sword Nothung equip spell Zigfried added to her, increasing her attack power to 2200. Just by playing it was Blue Eyes removed from the game! By also playing Pegasus Wings, Brunhilde could attack Kaiba directly by cutting her strength in half. No! Kaiba would lose! Thankfully, Shrink Card weakened her to 550 attack points, saving him this turn. But it wouldn't last long.

With some taunting, Zigfried actually began to explain what was behind all this. Apparently, the Schroeder family and the Kaibas were bitter business rivals and Zigfried was burdened with having to run the company after his father was driven mad from the task. When Zigfried took over, he switched his company into a gaming one and not long after, Kaiba did too. Then, when Pegasus was needing virtual reality devices for Duel Monsters, Zigfried was just a tad too slow to getting the job; Kaiba had made it there first. It was just one big race and Zigfried was just a little too slow to keep up. I actually felt a little bad for him. Kaiba didn't feel the same way.

"Don't blame me because you came from a family of failures." Kaiba barked at him. "I've never stolen anything in my life. I got where I am today from hard work and determination; two things you know nothing about!"

Kaiba started his own turn, thankfully not drawing any monsters. He then went around Nibelung's Ring by playing Graceful Charity.

"Awesome!" Jounouchi cheered. "He avoided Zigfried's spell card! That's showing him, Rich Boy!"

I had no time to prepare for Yami popping out again and leaning over to me.

"Did I hear that right?" He asked. "Jounouchi is cheering for Kaiba?"

I gave a playful shrug.

"This week has just been weird." I replied.

"You can say that again."

It only got weirder. Kaiba willingly discarded his last Blue Eyes then banished it from the game along with Pitch Dark Dragon to summon Chaos Emperor Dragon. This card was a trip from what I remembered. Its effect destroyed everything including itself and the cards in the players hands!

"There's one problem!" Zigfried cried. "You need to give up 1000 of your life points first unt you can't afford that now!"

"There's nothing I can't afford!" Kaiba retorted.

That is entirely true! True in real life and what he was going to play! He played a card face down just so Emergency Provisions could destroy it and give him 1000 life points! Thankfully Yami was still out at the moment as I needed a safe place to hide when the large dragon attacked, sending a large plume of fire across the field and nearly into the audience. It was quick attack and I was sure to thank him. Seeing that it was safe, he let Yugi have control again.

Zigfried's face was beginning to contort again. He was mad. He started his turn by playing Pot of Greed. I had to fight with myself not to make the joke and succeeded. He then played Magical Alms, forcing each player to predict how many spell cards they'd use each turn. They'd gain life points for each card but if they use fewer than they predict, they'd lose 1000 life points per card. That was wild! Zigfried predicted he'd only use one spell card that turn and it was Final Light, letting him summon a monster from his graveyard at the cost of 1000 life points. Of course, he chose Brunhilde. The power extended to Kaiba as well so he was able to summon Cave Dragon, which gave Brunhilde a power boost. She destroyed the dragon easily, which wasn't unexpected.

Kaiba really scared Zigfried by saying he'd use four spell cards despite only holding one card. He quickly bolstered his deck by playing Card of Demise, spell card number one. I remembered it from Battle City, it let him draw till he was holding five cards but in five turns he had to discard his whole hand. Thankfully, I think the duel was winding up. Spell card number two was Soul Release, letting him move his Chaos Emperor Dragon from the graveyard to outside the game. Spell card number three was Spell Reproduction, giving him the power to send two spell cards to the graveyard to get back one.

"No, you can't!" Zigfried argued.

"I just did." Kaiba taunted.

Spell card number four was Dimension Fusion, which he must have played while I was giggling about Pot of Greed the first time. With that, Kaiba – and of course Zigfried if he had any – could bring back any monsters that were removed from the game at the cost of 2000 life points. Kaiba… Had a lot of dragons removed from the game and they utterly crowded his side of the field. Despite the power up Brunhilde gets from having so many dragons on the field, Kaiba attacked anyway.

Luster Dragon #2 was defeated quickly but it cost Brunhilde some of her attack power. Kaiba was going to exploit her special ability! Chaos Dragon attacked then and Brunhilde had to lower her defense points to protect herself. The first Blue Eyes attack and now, Brunhilde was out of defense points and at the mercy of the second Blue Eyes. She was done for! That left the third Blue Eyes to wipe Zigfried out. "I'm glad you came here 'cause now I get the chance to publicly humiliate you again! Take it away, Blue Eyes!"

It was rather anti-climactic but I knew Zigfried wasn't going to just disappear like Kaiba wanted him to. That expression was still on his face. I glanced over at Yugi.

"Well… at least Kaiba's never boring." I shrugged.

Yugi was still jaw dropped from what happened so he didn't answer me. It made me giggle a bit.

Next was the final battle of the tournament. Finally, it was Yugi versus Leon!

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter!**

**Yami Bakura: Where was our conversation last chapter? You skipped me!**

**I have been trapped in quarantine for so long, I simply didn't feel like it. **

**Yami Bakura: Jerk!**


	12. For the Sake of Family

**Welcome welcome! I come bearing a new chapter! This is a bit of a longer one since it is all three episodes of the final duel of the KC tournament! Hope you all are staying safe and healthy!**

***I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! I only own my OC, Christine. If you recognize anything, I don't own that either.***

I was getting stiff from sitting in this seat for so long. I wanted to stand up and stretch but was most likely not going to be given the chance for another few minutes. Since I was still sitting, I could hear Rebecca start to talk.

"Can you believe that guy?" Rebecca huffed. "He weaseled his way into this tournament just to publicly humiliate Kaiba!"

"Well…" Leon argued. "He did have his reasons…"

"Yeah…" Honda added. "But when he started endangering people's lives, Zigfried stepped over the line."

"I agree." I added with a nod. "Hurting other people for your own revenge only makes you look more like a bad guy."

"Do you guys think all that stuff about Kaiba stealing Zigfried's invention is true?" Yugi suddenly asked. "I mean, he seems pretty bitter."

"Hardly! Kaiba's been working on that stuff for years! Remember those virtual reality pods? I'm sure Zigfried is just blinded by anger and jealousy."

Yugi gave a hum and, from the shiver down my spine, he went for Yami's opinion. He said nothing to argue with me so I guess our thoughts were pretty close.

Mokuba then chased after his brother, most likely congratulating him. They spoke to Roland for a moment before Kaiba gave one of his evil laughs and walked off. The man fumbled for a second before pulling out his microphone.

"It's the moment you've all been waiting for!" Roland called. "The final match of the Grand Championships featuring the Boy Wonder and Semi-Finalist Champ! It's Leaping Leon Wilson!"

All of us gave cheers and claps but… Leon didn't look too happy. He actually looked a bit nervous. "He'll face off against the reigning International Duel Monsters Champion! None other than the King of Games himself, Yugi Motou!" Leon's smile returned as he looked at Yugi, who smiled back. "This will be a duel to remember!"

The crowd was allowed to leave then as we all headed to the Blue Eyes Fortress. I didn't even know what this thing was but it sure looked neat! Mokuba took the rest of the gang to where they were sitting while I quickly followed after Yugi and Yami to wish them luck. I must have just missed the switch as Yami was now walking up the steps.

"Hey!"

Yami turned around and smiled.

"Shouldn't you be with everyone else?" He asked.

"I should but I wanted to wish you two luck. I know you'll do great!"

The smile grew and I gave him a quick hug but tight before I scampered off. I didn't want to miss too much of the duel by waiting in the tunnel. I dashed as fast as I could but I only made it back up when Kaiba started talking. No one paid me any mind as I stood next to Anzu as we looked up at the CEO.

"The KC Grand Championship Tournament was designed with one thing in mind: finding the only person besides myself who deserves to be called the Greatest Duelist in the World! So these two competitors will face off in one final battle to determine just that! Start the duel!"

The first thing I noticed was the absolute malice in Leon's voice. He didn't sound like himself. What was going on? He played Forest Wolf in attack mode and I couldn't help but recognize the apron and bonnet on its head. The Big Bad Wolf?

"What the heck is that?" Jounouchi asked. "A Wolf in Grandma's clothing?"

"Don't be fooled!" Rebecca warned. "That card's bad news!"

Yami fusion summoned Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast and quickly destroyed the wolf. We all cheered but Leon snapped at us. I couldn't help but actually feel hurt at the words. I stared silently as Leon then played a card that looked a lot like Little Red Riding Hood.

"She's so cute!" Anzu cooed.

"I can't believe I know this but isn't that Little Red Riding Hood?" Jounouchi asked.

"I guess Leon still likes Fairy Tales."

"Trust me, you guys don't even know the half of it." Rebecca deadpanned.

"Well how tough can they be?"

"Let's just say they're not the sweet little characters you guys remember!"

"Make your move!" Leon practically spat and I flinched at the words.

"Leon!" I gasped.

The boy didn't look up, eyes still narrowed at Yugi. What was going on?

"Speaking of not being sweet, what's up with Leon?" Anzu asked.

"Yeah!" Rebecca agreed. "Ever since this duel started, he's been acting like a jerk!"

"For once, I agree with you dorks." Kaiba's voice suddenly cut in.

We all turned around to see Kaiba now glaring daggers down at Leon. "I've been watching the competitors closely since the tournament began and something definitely seems different about that kid!" Was it something like Invasion of the Body Snatchers…? I mentally whacked myself for even suggesting that.

Yami started his next turn by playing Obnoxious Celtic Guardian. Why was he obnoxious? That was the real question of the day. The elven warrior attacked Little Red Riding Hood but then her special ability activated. When she's destroyed, she can let Leon summon a level four warrior monster from his deck. He chose Forest Hunter, who also had an effect that could banish a Beast or Beast Warrior monster before he even attacks. That meant Chimera! The large beast exploded but Leon didn't smile. He only said that he had a job to do. I wasn't allowed to dwell on it long as one of Kaiba's men jumped up behind him.

"Mr. Kaiba!" The man cried. "You've got to take a look at this!"

Kaiba snatched the paper from the man. "Something was fishy in Leon's profile so I ran another background check."

Kaiba glared at the paper like it would catch fire.

"Tell me this is some kind of joke."

"I'm afraid it's true, Herr Kaiba!" Zigfried's voice sounded so cheerful with that.

"So this is the final part of your twisted plan?"

"Yes. Unt it took you long enough to figure it out."

What was going on up there? What was in Leon's profile that would scare Kaiba's men so much?

"Throwing away your own life wasn't good enough so you had to drag your own brother down with you?!"

We all gasped. Leon was Zigfried's brother? I turned back to Leon to see if he would argue but he didn't, only looking up as Zigfried walked onto the balcony where Kaiba stood.

"It's all true, every word of it! Leon Vilson is, in reality, my younger brother! Leon von Schroeder!"

It was actually kind of brilliant. He made Kaiba focus on him while Leon could sneak through the ranks to the top and win the Championship crown. But it all hinged on Leon winning the duel and, Kaiba said it best that only he had the talent to beat him.

"Tell me, Leon!" Yami then called. "Are you really here to destroy Kaiba Corp or are you letting your brother control who you are?!"

Leon didn't get a chance to answer as his brother jumped in.

"Listen, Leon! Don't let these do-gooders turn you against me! Zey will never understand vhat our family has been through! Now go ahead and crush Yugi Motou so you can obtain Championship title that you so rightfully deserve! It's your duty as a Schroeder!"

Leon nodded his head, saying he understood. Yami tried to talk to him again but Leon shut him down. It broke my heart to hear him say that this was the first time Zigfried had asked him for help. Leon explained that Zigfried had always been the favored child in their household while Leon was ignored. He had to learn to entertain himself and had always loved Fairy Tales. Then he discovered Duel Monsters and, through changing his name to protect his identity, he won tournament after tournament. Zigfried caught him after winning a tournament and essentially used his desire to be a part of his family to coerce him into being part of his plan. I couldn't fight the tears at that. It was emotional abuse!

Leon continued the duel, playing Iron Hans which let him automatically summon his Iron Knight. They were all lower attack points than Obnoxious Celtic Guardian but… I was worried about an effect. Still wiping away tears, I stared at the duel.

There was a brush at my cheek but no one was standing next to me. I glanced over to see a translucent Slifer standing next to me. I might have jumped in surprise but the god card had already done more than enough strange things that I was now numb to it.

"And how are you here?" I muttered.

There was silence at that so I looked back to the duel, seeing Leon send his own monster to the graveyard with a giant iron cage.

_'Check your pocket, child.'_ A whispery voice echoed in my ear, the same one where Slifer's head was.

I did so and tried to hide my surprise when I felt three duel monster cards laying innocently in my pocket. Conniving spirit! He stuck the god cards in my pocket when I hugged him! I was wondering where he was keeping them! There was a laugh from the voice but it quickly faded into a soft hum. _'Do not worry about Leon, child.'_ I immediately gave a sigh.

"I can't help it." I watched as the Forest Warrior attacked Yami next, lowering his life points even further. "He's having his emotions tugged at by his psychopath of a brother when all he wants is to be accepted and loved by his emotionally distant family. I'm scared the Leon I thought I knew is completely gone."

_'He isn't.'_

"And why do you say that?"

The Slifer head twisted to look at Leon and I followed. He was looking down at his cards, a sweet smile on his face. Those fairy tales meant everything to him. Then the ice took over again leaving me sighing.

_'If anyone can get through to him, it is the Pharaoh.'_

"If you say so."

The little god didn't vanish from my shoulder, adjusting so that the large head laid against my shirt like a parrot. I hoped he was right.

Yami started his next turn by playing Queen's Knight as well as a card face down. Most likely a trap card to protect himself. Leon retaliated by activating his Iron Cage's second effect, bringing back the monster he had destroyed. The re-summoning allowed him to bring up another Iron Knight. The boy then played Spinning Wheel Spindle and I recognized which Fairy Tale that was from.

"It's time to reenact the story of Sleeping Beauty with your Queen!" Leon called.

I couldn't help but flinch at that. I had totally forgotten that Queen's Knight was on the field. There were too many queens here. The translucent Slifer gave a chuckle and I told him to shut up, hardly caring that he was a god. Queen's Knight would be back in three turns but Leon still had three monsters. Mirror Force took care of them in quick order but I knew the duel wasn't over yet. Leon continued by playing Water of Life, which allowed him to bring a monster back from the grave. He brought back Iron Hans again and, again, another Iron Knight appeared to join the party.

Slifer was immediately on my case when I started giggling when Yami started his turn with Pot of Greed.

_'Is now really the time to be laughing at such a thing?'_

"When is it not?" I retorted. "Gotta laugh at something."

There was a sigh but he didn't argue with me. With the help of Pot of Greed, Yami drew Watapon, the cute puff ball of a monster, and was able to summon it since it was drawn with the help of a spell card. He was still allowed to summon as Watapon was a special summon so he ribute the puff ball to summon Dark Magician Girl. The look on Leon's face was just like his normal one, blushing when she blew him a kiss. It sadly didn't last long. She attacked his Iron Knight and Yami ended his turn.

Leon then played a card that made Kaiba, Grandpa and Professor Hawkins gasp. Golden Castle of Stromberg wasn't exactly a card I'd ever heard of before. What did it do? Leon said one of the effects was he could automatically summon a level four monster from his deck and he chose Cinderella. Her summoning allowed Leon to summon his Pumpkin Carriage and Cinderella was allowed to attack directly! What?! The glass had to have hurt when it hit him. It also didn't help that when Cinderella attacked, her shoes were transferred to Dark Magician Girl, who lost 1000 attack points and now couldn't attack Cinderella herself.

"Yugi's getting crushed!" Ryuji gasped.

"He's the King of Games!" Jounouchi argued. "Ya think he's scared of some princess?!"

"That's no princess!" Rebecca argued with him. "That's a monster in heels!"

_'Well, that's kind of rude.'_

I rolled my eyes at the god's comment. I was brought back to the present when Professor Hawkins started talking.

"You see, kids." He breathed. "There are several Duel Monsters cards that Pegasus created but never fully developed and therefore never officially released."

"You three." I huffed at Slifer who gave a surprisingly evil laugh.

"And the Golden Castle of Stromberg is one of them!"

"Then how did Leon get hold of it?" Jounouchi asked.

"I recall a tournament several years ago that offered the Golden Castle Card as the Grand Prize but it was never meant to be used!" Grandpa explained.

"That's right! Because it was only a test sample, it was forbidden from tournament play!"

"And since only one copy was ever made, it remains one of the most sought after cards in the game!"

"I just can't believe that Leon has it in his deck!"

It may not have been there to start with. I had noticed Leon glancing up at Zigfried before he played the card. Zigfried may have given him it. Slifer's head adjusted to move to my other shoulder, a hum echoing in my other ear.

"If that's really a non-registered card," Mokuba breathed up to his brother, "Leon's duel disk shouldn't have recognized it, right? So… What's the deal?"

"The Card Limiter must have been deactivated!" Kaiba gasped. "And I think I know how."

"Hold on!" Jounouchi jumped in. "So that means that Leon is cheating!"

Leon's eyes shifted away from the hard ice. He looked horrified.

"I am?!" He gasped.

Zigfried of course denied hacking into Kaiba's mainframe to ensure this would happen. He again goaded Kaiba to stop the duel if only to harm his reputation. It seems Zigfried was thinking he had Kaiba right where he wanted him. I've known Kaiba for a long time now but I highly doubted this guy had a good read on him from just a few chance meetings. The elder Schroeder kept trying to convince Leon that the card was real but I could see the seeds of doubt beginning to fester in Leon's eyes.

"How could you!" Yami growled up at Zigfried.

"I knew you were jerk but lying to your own brother?!" Jounouchi growled as well.

Poor Leon… Being lied to by the one person he wanted to have notice him. Slifer's head brushed up against my cheek again, being a perfect quiet comfort.

"Don't listen to them, Leon!" Zigfried continued to call down to Leon. "They don't care about you! These friends of Herr Kaiba just vant to tear our family apart! Now who are you going to believe: these strangers or your own flesh and blood?"

Leon looked so confused now. He looked at his duel disk wordlessly for another few seconds before looking back up to his brother.

"It's just…" Leon's voice shook as he spoke. "I don't wanna win by cheating…"

"I told you zat card is legal!"

"Don't trust him." Yami said far more calmly than I would have, turning to face Zigfried rather than Leon.

"Why not?" Leon asked.

"He's just using you. He reprogramed Kaiba Corp's dueling system, forcing our duel disks to accept an illegal card!"

"Is this true?"

I didn't give Zigfried the attention he wanted, keeping my eyes on the duel. Zigfried admitted to hacking the system to get the card accepted but he still had the gall to try and keep Leon on his side. Thankfully, the ball was already set in motion as Leon played Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy the Golden Castle.

_'Don't get your hopes up.'_

Hm? I looked again and gasped. The castle was still there?! What?! Zigfried's laugh explained everything. He hacked the card's data, protecting it from Spell cards, Trap cards and who knew what else! He also added a virus into the card data. Once it was played, a devastating virus would be unleashed into Kaiba's system. It was actively deleting everything in Kaiba's mainframe!

"It's all my fault…"

The damage had been done. Zigfried had lost Leon's cooperation. "I never should have trusted him but now it's too late."

"It's never too late, Leon!" I called.

The boy looked up at me but it was like he couldn't even see me as his eyes dropped back to his deck. He can't surrender! His dream of dueling Yugi! Funny enough, Zigfried stopped him from surrendering, saying that the virus couldn't be stopped by surrendering the duel. It had to be destroyed.

"How?" Anzu groaned. "Spell and Trap cards are useless against it, right?"

"Yeah." Jounouchi agreed. "And who know what other abilities Zigfried added to that thing."

Leon still felt hopeless but Yami refused to give up hope. Just like when he fought against Slifer and Marik's infinite combo, I knew he would find this card's weakness. The god himself gave a chuckle like he knew that was what I was thinking.

Kaiba left quickly after that, Mokuba following on his heels. They were most likely going to lead the group trying to protect as many files as they can. I watched as Yami went to give Leon some comforting words but he still looked worried. This betrayal hit deep. I didn't have any siblings so I wouldn't know what this felt like.

Yami started his turn by drawing a card but Dark Magician girl began to attack. What is she doing?!

"Golden Castle of Stromberg's special effect is automatically activated!" Zigfried cheerfully exclaimed.

Dark Magician Girl attacked but it was reflected back at her, destroying her immediately. What the heck just happened? "As long as my new and improved castle remains on the field, both player's monsters will be forced to do battle each turn. Unt as an added twist, whenever one of your monsters is forced to attack, half of that monster's attack points are then deducted from your life points. Unt then the monster itself is destroyed!" What kind of effect was that?!

"Can he really make a card do that?!" Jounouchi gasped.

"I think he just did!" Honda added.

Leon looked downtrodden again but Yami was quick to lift his spirits.

"Leon!" He called. "We can't give up! Every card has a weakness and as long as we continue to duel to the very end, we'll find a way to tear that castle down!"

He was very good at lifting spirits. I'm sure he's had a lot of practice with all of us. Slifer gave a knowing laugh but no matter how much I looked at him to talk, he kept both of his mouths shut.

Yami played a card face down and ended his turn. But before Leon could start his own turn, Zigfried butt in again with another one of his added effects. Yami had to place half of his deck into the graveyard with every one of Leon's turns. That was utter bullshit! Leon unwittingly played another Forest Wolf and his monsters were now forced to attack. Cinderella landed an attack on him but the moment Forest Wolf attacked, his face down card protected him. Dark Magic Retribution let Yami bring back a spellcaster from the graveyard if he was attacked. He chose Dark Magician Girl, who protected him for the duration of the turn before returning to the graveyard.

Yami's next turn began and Queen's Knight returned. Oh yeah, it has been three turns! That felt like an eternity ago. He then played two cards face down but then activated Card of Sanctity, letting them both draw till they had six cards. He then summoned King's Knight, and with Queen's Knight already on the field, he could summon Jack's Knight. Then playing Royal Straight, Yami could sacrifice his three knights to summon Royal Straight Slasher from his hand, deck or graveyard. The warrior was imposing for sure, but he was kinda creepy. But his effect, by what Yami was describing, could actually destroy the Castle.

"Oooh…" I hummed. "Will it work?"

Slifer was quiet, which didn't give me any confidence. Yami had to discard a monster from the first five levels to activate the effect. Level one was Kuriboh, level two was Old Vindictive Magician, level three was Giant Soldier of Stone, level four was Big Shield Gardna and level five was Curse of Dragon. The effect was a large explosion, destroying all of Leon's monsters but the debris covered the castle for the moment. Did it work?

Zigfried's laughter told me otherwise. So monster effects were useless after all!

I was tempted to whack Honda for suggesting the duel was done and there was going to be a new champion but Yami playing Time Travel stopped me. It ensured that the Slasher didn't attack and Yami lost the rest of his life points. Leon drew to start his turn and Zigfried called for Yami to put half of his deck into the graveyard. Yami only smiled.

"Sorry to disappoint you but I can't do that." Yami sassed.

"You must!" Zigfried argued.

Yami lifted his duel disk to show that only one card was left in the slot. It was another Slifer incident. Instead of running out of cards to draw, he couldn't put half of one card into the graveyard.

"You're wrong! There's only one card left in my deck! That makes it impossible for me to deposit half of it into the graveyard! So I suppose your Golden Castle of Stromberg has to go!"

It was Zigfried's turn to look horrified as the Golden Castle faded away like it should have with Mystical Space Typhoon. Leon's smile was genuine as he looked back to Yami.

"You did it!" Leon cheered.

"You mess with the best and you fail like the rest!" Jounouchi quoted.

I knew he could do it. I smiled as I lifted a hand to brush a finger along the tiny Slifer head.

"Get a load of Zigfreak!" Honda taunted.

"Oh well! You schemed, you cheated and you still lost!"

Zigfried didn't take the offense, only starting to laugh.

"I admit that I'm surprised Yugi was able to dismantle my Golden Castle, but in the end, victory will be mine!"

"Yeah, right!"

_'He has a point…'_ Slifer droned quietly as Zigfried began to talk again.

"You're not on his side, right?!" I hissed.

_'Of course not, child. I'm only saying that Leon has a slight advantage at the moment; the Pharaoh only has one card left and it's Leon's turn; Zigfried still believes that Leon will win.'_

Well… no pressure there… I kept mindlessly rubbing over the Sky Dragon's head as I looked back to the duel.

"I'm quitting!" Leon called again.

"Don't even think about it!" Yami argued with him. "Now that your brother's castle is gone, the real duel can begin! You owe it to yourself to fulfill your dream and see this duel through to the end. Right?"

Leon smiled again. There he goes again. Leon nodded. "I believe it was your move." The Slasher returned since it was Leon's turn and the Time Travel card's effect faded. Leon started his turn by playing Monster Reborn to bring Cinderella back from the graveyard, which let him summon his Pumpkin Carriage again. He then sacrificed both of them to summon Hexe Trude to the field. I had no idea what fairy tale she was from but wow! She attacked Yami's slasher and gained 400 extra attack points just for destroying him. She now had 3000 attack points!

Ok… Yami… it was time for a miracle.

Yami drew his last card and the tide began to shift. He placed one card face down just to destroy it with Emergency Provisions, gaining 1000 life points. He then played his own Monster Reborn and the look on Leon's face when Dark Magician showed up was so cute! To make up for the fact that Hexe Trude had more attack points, Yami then played Necromancy, bringing back four random monsters from Leon's graveyard in defense mode. It seemed strange but then he explained that Hexe Trude would lose 600 attack points for each one that was destroyed. And if he destroys all of them at once… She would have nothing! And he did just that. By sacrificing 1000 life points, Yami was able to activate Diffusion Wave Motion and end the duel.

"Yeah, baby!" Jounouchi cheered.

"He won!" Anzu and Rebecca cheered as well, surprisingly holding each other.

"Knew it." I hummed.

_'There was some doubt…'_

I poked the god on his translucent nose.

"Hush, you."

There was a chuckle before the god finally faded away. I huffed at his after image. What was he even doing here to begin with? I wasn't going to get an answer so I looked back down to see Yami walking over to Leon. They talked for a moment before Leon threw himself into Yami's chest, crying. That brought tears to my eyes.

"Oh, would you stop your whimpering!" Zigfried's voice made the tears fade into anger.

He had suddenly gotten down to the bottom level. "It wasn't a total loss! It will take years of reprograming for Kaiba Corp to restore what my devastatingly brilliant computer virus has destroyed! Unt in the meantime…"

"You'll what?" Kaiba's voice taunted. "Take all of my business away?"

We all looked up to see Kaiba and Mokuba had come back. "You might've had a chance if your plan actually worked, Zigfried."

"Vat?!"

"The moment I laid eyes on you; I knew you were a snake. So I was more than prepared for your little scheme! My entire computer network has already been restored. So the only loser here is you!"

Kinda harsh… but needed…

"I don't believe you! My strategy was flawless!"

"Zigfried, wait…" Leon tried to talk to his brother.

Zigfried snapped around, eyes almost mad.

"Not now, Leon."

"Look, even if your plan did work, nothing would have changed! Can't you see that our family's obsession with the Kaiba's has ruined us?"

Zigfried actually scared me when he fell to his knees.

"What's ruined us, Leon, is that I'm weak! I'll never beat Kaiba!"

"That's the first sensible thing he's said all week." Kaiba huffed.

That nearly got a snort out of me. Wow, Kaiba pulled no punches. I would have told him off but the brotherly moment below took my anger out of me.

Roland quickly wrapped up the Tournament, proclaiming Yugi Motou as the continued reigning champion of Duel Monsters. Like that was totally unexpected.

The next day, we were all packed up at an airport, ready to go home. I had returned the God Cards after Yugi went on a panicked search for them earlier. Seems I was the only one to have seen Slifer on my shoulder, nor did anyone hear my whispers to him. He didn't even show up again despite me holding onto the cards for the rest of the day yesterday. Oh, well. My little secret.

"That was fun!" Jounouchi said mid-stretch. "But I'm ready to go back."

"I'm ready for a home cooked meal!" Honda exclaimed.

"Ooohh, me too!" I agreed.

Honda and I high fived for the agreement and the gang laughed.

"Not to drag out this goodbye because I'll be in your neighborhood in a few weeks." Ryuji said.

"Why's that?" Jounouchi asked.

Ryuji got a coy look in his eye then. I immediately became nervous.

"I've got a date with Shizuka."

I jumped out of the way before he was murdered by Jounouchi and Honda. I didn't know if I wanted to break it up since we were in public but I ended up just rolling my eyes. I moved over to Yugi and Anzu then.

"Yugi…" Rebecca hummed. "Don't forget you promised to email me twice a day and visit every weekend!"

That seems a bit much… Yugi only chuckled and agreed. "And you!" Rebecca pointed at me.

"Me?" I asked, eyes widening in curiosity.

"You keep an eye on 'him'!"

I immediately caught on to who 'him' was and laughed. I gave a playful salute in response.

"Will do, Rebecca."

Mokuba then came over, berating us for being late for the flight home. Kaiba had been nice enough to let us use his private plane to get us back to Japan. It may have been a long flight but I was glad to finally be home.

When Meg was admitted into our class at school barely a week later, I knew fate had an interesting turn of events coming up real soon.

**Hope you all enjoyed! **

**Yami Bakura: *Makes a duck call***

***Gives him a dirty look* Really?**

**Yami Bakura: I'm just giving your audience a hint as to what's making you take so long on writing stuff. *Makes the duck call again.***

**I want to see him beat the game! What do you want me to do?!**

**Yami Bakura: Write?! What else?!**


	13. Traveling Someplace New

**Welcome to Robyn writing this next arc simply for Alexander the Great content. All of the opinions about said conqueror are Christine's not mine. I know Capsule Monsters is extremely cheesy and all that but I find it very amusing... and cheesy in some instances. I hope you all enjoy!**

***I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! I only own my OCs Meg - who only appears in like the first five seconds - and Christine. If you recognize anything else, I don't own that either.***

"Stiiiine!" Meg whined for the fourth time that morning as I walked her to school with her. "Come on!"

"What exactly are you wanting me to do?!" I asked, laughing. "Yami already did something to her."

"Yeah but that was over a year ago. I think it's time for a reminder."

I rolled my eyes. Of course she would want that.

It's been nearly a month since we came back from Kaiba Land and just about that long since Meg arrived in Japan as well; I still needed to write Pegasus to thank him for getting my best friend here. Things had been a little slow, except for the slow increase in Capsule Monsters purchases in the shop. It seems so long since I've seen those being sold; it probably helped that it was being updated with Duel Monster monsters. Was it like that to begin with? I couldn't remember. "Hey… Is Yugi doing ok?" I looked back to Meg, seeing her face contorted slightly in worry. "You mentioned the other day he's been having nightmares."

"Oh… Yeah… He's still having them."

Most mornings for the past week have consisted with Yugi falling out of bed from a nightmare. I'd catch him just as he was standing back up, chuckling nervously when I'd ask him if he was okay. Neither he nor Yami would tell me what was going on.

"He's not telling you anything?"

I shook my head.

"They say they don't want to worry me."

"They're worrying you by not talking."

I nodded my head in agreeance. I couldn't help but think they find didn't me trustworthy enough to talk about it. I shook that away. Of course I was trustworthy; why wouldn't I be? Sure I could be a smartass but… Had I done something?

It also didn't help that Grandpa hadn't come home yet. He was gone for a week visiting some site and was supposed to be home last night. My worry for Yugi was only combined with my concern for the elderly man who has taken care of me for so long. I was woken from my self-loathing by Meg humming. "Kaiba not coming today?"

We were at the entrance of the school and Kaiba's limo wasn't there as usual. Seems he was at his office building; he was still the CEO of his company.

"Doesn't look like it." I turned a teasing smile on my friend. "Why are you so concerned, Meggie? Want to see your favorite character?"

"Of freaking course! Why wouldn't I want to see him?!"

"You hang out with the geek squad."

Meg laughed at the 'derogatory' name the gang had acquired. "Come on, Meggie." With no argument, we walked into the school grounds and into class.

I was actually amazed to see Jounouchi had beaten us there. Meg gave a roll of her eyes at how excited he looked, tapped me on the back like it was a good luck charm, then headed to her desk. I tried to settle things at my own desk but was dragged by an arm around my neck to where the rest of the gang was. "What the heck, Jounouchi?!"

"Ya need to be part of the pow wow!" He exclaimed.

"Pow wow? For what?"

A set of tickets were thrust in my face, making me back up and attempt to read what the paper said. It looked like a ticket to some place. Wait a minute… He did mention hearing about a place where you could win tickets to some place. "Did you actually win?" Jounouchi nodded his head so fast, I was scared it was going to fly off. "Color me impressed."

"Be nice! Or I'm not taking you!"

I gave a laugh at that but gave a peek at Meg. She was rolling her eyes and doing the 'shoo' motion with her hand. She was ok with me leaving? I was still slightly concerned since there were apparently a lot more ghosts here than in the town where she was before but… The concern gave way to an idea.

Hopefully she wouldn't kill me for going through with it.

After school that day, I walked back to the game shop with the gang. Jounouchi and Honda were up front while Anzu, Yugi and I were a few paces behind. Meg would have joined us but she decided to be a good student and remain behind to catch up on things she might have missed in the curriculum that she should know in order to pass some classes. It was very studious of her; she whacked me for saying so. Jounouchi was still smiling and laughing about his luck.

"Do you have to walk like a freak?" Honda asked, eyebrow raised. "I know you're excited about winning this trip but it's a little embarrassing."

Jounouchi suddenly flipped around, moving to point a finger in Honda's face. We all stopped to see what he was going to do.

"You're the one who should be embarrassed for not thanking me!" Jounouchi retorted.

"You're right!" Yugi quickly thanked his friend, bright smile on his face. "Thanks a lot, Jounouchi!"

"And do you have something you want to say to me, Honda?"

"Yeah." Honda retorted. "I call dibs on the aisle seat!"

I laughed, rolling my eyes. My friends…

"Should be fun!" Yugi chirped. "Right, you two?"

"Anything with those two is bound to be a riot." I replied and Yugi laughed.

"I guess…" Anzu replied.

Yugi and I both turned to look at Anzu. She looked conflicted for some reason… Oh. I think I know what she was concerned about. Every time we go someplace, we wind up in trouble. It's happened with Meg, in Kaiba Land and who knew how many other places. She was probably hoping for a peaceful vacation for once. I for one would love a normal vacation but after over a year of being with these guys, it wasn't very likely. I was going to take what I could get. Anzu still hadn't spoken in a couple seconds so Yami popped out, most likely for the shock effect. It worked.

"Anzu?" He called and the girl jumped.

"Oh! Yugi!"

Anzu glared at me for cackling wildly. Yami also retaliated by elbowing me slightly but I only continued to laugh.

"Ready to do this?"

There was a moment before Anzu smiled again and nodded.

"It's party time!" Jounouchi cheered.

Honda and Jounouchi then started off, singing a song about how they were going on vacation, leaving Yami, Anzu and I in the dust.

"Well, at least it will be entertaining." Anzu looked over at me and I smiled, agreeing.

We had to survive the rest of the week of classes before we were able to get to the airport hop on the plane taking us to India. I didn't pack too much, only a few light clothes so I wouldn't be swamped with the heat. For the flight there, I settled with a similar outfit from California but this time with more durable shorts rather than leggings. I saw that Anzu and Honda followed similar ideas but Jounouchi… He had another idea. "Hey! Slow down! This isn't a race, ya know?!" Jounouchi had to have been carrying an entire laundry room on his back. That had to be the only explanation for why his stuff was so heavy. He was also panting like he had just run a marathon.

"Who told you to pack everything you owned for a six day trip?"

"A boy scout always comes prepared! You never know what we might need out there!"

"I'm going to regret asking this but what'd you bring?" I asked.

Jounouchi actually had to think about it. Oh no… please not a washing machine.

"Well… Ironing board… Hair dryer…"

Yep… I regret asking. The rest of the gang laughed at my expression as well as Jounouchi's need to bring a full ironing board.

"You're worse than me!" Anzu teased.

Our revelry was broken by the pilot of the plane arriving. Jounouchi had to dash after us as the pilot took us to the plane itself. It was a small one but hopefully not too small where they weighed even the smallest purse to see if it would stay up.

It was a long flight, longer than getting home from Kaiba Land. We flew through who knew how many time zones till we reached the subcontinent. A lot of us spent time resting, taking photos and other activities. I spent a majority of the time reading, as usual. The night before we were scheduled to get there, I was up late reading a book grandpa had gotten me on influential people in history. There were the basics like Caesar, Napoleon, Queen Victoria and others but I skipped one chapter entirely, not even wanting to deal with it. Yugi must have noticed as he flipped it back. I raised my eyebrow at him.

"You tell me not to skip chapters." Yugi chastised. "Why are you skipping this one?"

"I'm not a fan of the person they're discussing." I simply replied, moving the pages back so I could skip it.

Yugi stopped me again, practically snatching the book out of my hand. I gave a sigh, hopefully quiet enough that no one would hear me. Yugi looked over the page, reading the name of the chapter I was skipping.

"Alexander the Great?"

"Yes…"

"What about him do you not like?"

I gave a heaving sigh at that. There were a lot of things I could say but they would all send me on a rant that I didn't want to make Yugi endure. I settled on a sentence that was vague enough for me.

"I don't like what he made the world."

Yugi lifted his eyebrow at the sentence. I took my book back, setting my bookmark at the beginning of the chapter, and moving to the page where they had a map of the world. "Do you know a lot about Alexander the Great?"

"Not as much as you probably do but crash course me."

I rolled my eyes again but did as he asked.

"Alexander the Third of Macedon was born the heir to an already powerful kingdom. His father, Philip the Second, conquered the entirety of the Greek mainland before he was… suspiciously done away with and Alexander became king by the age of 20."

"Suspiciously?"

"Alexander is one of the main suspects for his father's murder."

Yugi gave a hum at that but allowed me to continue. "For the majority of his reign, he set about the known world on the most insane military campaign the world had ever seen at that point. From Greece, to Asia Minor," my finger traced the extent to which the Macedonian's campaign led him, "to the Middle East, even down to Egypt. For about 10 years, he ruled as the Pharaoh, even if he wasn't in Egypt for most of the time." Yami came out real quick with that. "He was considered a liberator to the Egyptian people, giving him royal titles and names in hieroglyphics. An oracle eventually proclaimed him the son of a god, Zeus-Ammon; some sort of mixture between Zeus and the King of the Egyptian Gods, Amun."

"You don't sound happy about that." Yami hummed.

"I'm not. There are rumors that he possibly bribed the oracle to say that, just to make him look better."

Yami adjusted the arm rest so that he could adjust me to lean on him. "He didn't leave Egypt until he consecrated a city with his name, Alexandria, up on the delta, where it would become a large port city as well as the home base for the…" I had to fight not to sneer at the name. "Ptolemaic dynasty." Yami didn't berate me for the pause, simply waiting for me to continue. "After that, he went back into battle against the Persians, claiming Babylon and Persepolis. Poor Persepolis, it didn't last long before someone set it on fire."

"Did he do anything to help?"

I adjusted so Yami couldn't see my face.

"He did order them to try and put out the flames but it came too late; the city was just… up in smoke."

I changed gears. "Eventually, he made it to the edge of India, crossing the Indus River valley. He stayed there for a little, moving every which way, while before his troops began to revolt."

"Revolt?"

"They were tired. They wanted to go home. Alexander wanted to stay. Had he continued on, he would have lost the respect and loyalty of his men – and he nearly did a couple of times – so he went back to Babylon to rest and plan. He was dead within a few weeks."

"What happened?"

I shrugged.

"No one really knows. Lots of theories from poison, illness, problems from heavy drinking and injuries, grief from losing his closest friend and or possible lover a couple weeks earlier… Too many. He was sick one day and 12 days later, he was gone."

Yami was silent and I took it as the chance for me to be done talking about the Macedonian. I put my book back into my bag, unclipped my charm so that it didn't get caught in my hair as I slept, reached up to turn off the light, then adjusted to get some last minute shut eye. Yami stayed out for a little bit longer. He adjusted when I was just starting to fall asleep so that he could whisper in my ear.

"What did you mean by you don't like what he made the world?"

I gave a sigh. Guess we were still on this topic. There was a moment of thought before adjusting back to him.

"Alexander wanted a world where there were mixed marriages, unprecedented friendships between people of different cultures and ethnicities et cetera et cetera. That's probably the one thing I do like about him but… The Hellenized world he created… It definitely put people of Greek heritage at the top of every food chain and the people who had lived there for centuries hurtling down the totem pole."

"Even in Egypt?"

I nodded. Yami adjusted further so that he could wrap an arm around my shoulders. I gave a happy hum at the affection. "It's not a bad thing to dream big."

"True… but he did have a big ego, kinda like someone I know…"

I was poked mercilessly for the tease and I had to hold in my laughter. "It's a good thing you have me so that your ego doesn't get too big."

"And I'm grateful."

The top of my head was kissed. "Get some sleep, Mereret." I happily listened.

When next I woke up, the rest of the gang were already jumping in their seats. I gave a quiet stretch before looking out my window. It was a legitimate jungle out there, a long river stretching for miles. It was utterly beautiful.

"We're almost there, kids!" One of our pilots cheered from the open cockpit.

"Think we can bungee jump over that river, guys?" Anzu squeaked.

"Why not?" Yugi replied cheerfully.

I would have replied with a firm no – I may have been an adrenaline junkie for rollercoasters but bungee jumping was right out – but I was stopped when my ears suddenly popped. The airplane suddenly was shaking violently.

"We're experiencing some minor engine trouble so please remain in your seats, keep your seatbelts fastened and don't panic." The pilot called back at us.

I think I may have been the only one not vocally panicking. I kept my hands clenched in my seat with my eyes shut. The grip only tightened when we took a near nose dive. "Mayday! Mayday! Our engines are down!" I barely had time to scream when our plane hit the water and crashed into the shore.

Thankfully, no one was hurt in the crash, not even the pilot. I had been shaken a bit but that was the extent of my injuries. I quietly berated myself when I saw the bit of ice clinging to the nose of the plane; while it may have stopped us from being flung into a tree, it was in public! Neither of the pilots noticed so that was a relief for me.

I walked over to where the rest of the gang had collapsed. Jounouchi had fallen to the ground in shock.

"I lost all my stuff!" He whined.

I had as well but I still had my strap bag. Thankfully, I had kept my charm inside it rather than trying to get it into my main luggage. Even if I lost the small bag, the charm Kokona had helped me place on it would ensure I didn't lose it for long.

"That was enough excitement to last the whole trip." Honda sighed.

"The pilot sent a distress signal," Anzu then breathed to us, "but he said it may take a while before help arrives."

Jounouchi then perked up quickly.

"Well I don't know about you," Jounouchi said as he bounced to his feet, "but I'm not wasting my free trip waiting for a rescue team!"

"I'm with you, dude!" Honda agreed. "Let's check this place out!"

"Later!"

Jounouchi and Honda then dashed into the forest. I would have been content to let them wander alone except Yugi and Anzu chased after them. Feeling left out, I dashed after them, if only to keep them out of trouble.

It felt like we walked for hours but it had only been a couple of minutes. I was starting to lose my sense of direction because of all the tress.

"So am I the only one who thinks walking aimlessly through an unknown jungle – that's probably filled with wild, man eating animals – is a bad idea?" Anzu mused.

"Nope!" I called out in agreeance.

"Nah!" Jounouchi hollered loudly, far more loudly than I did. "They're more afraid of us than we are of them!"

Honda's gasp sent the 'brave' Jounouchi scrambling up a tree. How brave. "Please tell me it's not a wild animal!"

"It's not a wild animal!" Honda gave Jounouchi that. "It's a person!"

A person? All the way out here? We all took a glance at each other before running into the clearing. A blond man wearing a dark coat of some kind had collapsed onto the ground. There were cuts and bruises across his face. What had happened?

When we got him sitting up, I sat closest to make sure he stayed upright. Anzu then gave him a bottle of water which he chugged nearly to the bottom. "Someone was thirsty!"

"Are you feeling better now?" Anzu asked.

The man gave a relieved smile after he finished swallowing the water.

"Much better in fact." The man replied. "I'm quite lucky you all came along."

He adjusted to sit better and a piece of cloth slid out of his robe. Yugi picked it up to hand back to him.

"Here you go!" Yugi then took a look at it and his eyes widened. "My grandpa has the same bandana!"

The man flew out of my grasp to grip at Yugi's shoulders. I squeaked at the suddenness.

"Wait! Are you Dr. Motou's grandson?!"

Yugi blinked up at the man. How did this guy know grandpa?

"As a matter of fact, yes. Is my grandfather ok?"

The man then gave a sound of discomfort.

"He's… uh… Now, how shall I put this…"

The man leaned back against the rock we had settled him on. "Dr. Motou is a colleague of mine and on our latest expedition together, he disappeared." Disappeared?! Great! Another installment of the disappearing Grandpa! I didn't dare say that in front of Yugi, who looked just as panicked as the last time this happened. "My name is Dr. Alex Brisbane and your grandfather is my archaeological mentor as well as one of my dearest companions. Now come and I'll show you where I last saw him." I wasn't too enthused with following the man but… if Yugi went, I would go.

We all followed Dr. Brisbane further into the jungle. I felt the slight shiver down my spine that was the notice that Yami was poking his head out slightly. He didn't take control so he was just talking to Yugi. Yugi was probably needing the comfort after the latest Grandpa disappearance. I was able to keep walking a couple more feet before Yugi came over to me.

"Penny for your thoughts?" I asked softly. "Or Yami's at that?"

"He's convinced this is too convenient." Yugi replied. "We win the trip, plane crashes, meeting Dr. Brisbane…"

Yugi's hand then moved to the puzzle. "And the puzzle's also been acting strange. I'm starting to agree with him…"

Was this something to do with their nightmares? When Yugi didn't say anything more, I settled a hand onto Yugi's shoulder, squeezing gently.

"And I agree. It seems too perfect for it to be just coincidence. I'll keep my eyes open."

Yugi nodded his head firmly.

After anther few minutes in the trees, we finally exited into a large clearing. I was blinded by the sun for a second before they adjusted on the strangest sight I had ever seen. "What is a pyramid doing here?! And how the hell did they build it inside that pit?!"

It was a full pyramid complex inside the pit below us, complete with the long passage way up to the pyramid itself and two smaller pyramids next to it. I stared at it for a long moment, trying to make sense of it.

"That is exactly what Dr. Motou and I were trying to find out." Dr. Brisbane replied to my confusion.

It took us a few minutes to climb into the pit. I kept muttering about how perfect the pyramid looked: from the color of the stone, to the fact that the capping stones were still in place and all the way to the ben-ben stone still in place at the tip. What the heck was this?!

"So spill it, doc!" Jounouchi turned to Dr. Brisbane as we walked along the passage up to the pyramid. "What's the deal with this place?"

"Well, if my theory is correct, it's the legendary Pyramid of Alexander!"

"I'm gonna need more info. For starters, who's this Alexander?"

"Why Alexander the Great of course!"

My huff alerted Yugi, who tried to muffle his laughter.

"Your favorite person!" Yugi tried to lighten the mood with a joke.

"Joy…" I replied. "But why is it here of all places! Alexander was buried in Alexandria! In Egypt!"

I was gently shushed by Anzu, who was listening to Dr. Brisbane talk.

"At one point in history, he controlled Egypt, making him one of the great Pharaohs." Dr. Brisbane continued talking.

I held back a scoff. Great, huh?

"Huh…" Jounouchi nodded his head. "Well I guess that explains the whole pyramid thing."

"But it doesn't explain why it was built in the middle of a jungle hundreds of miles from Egypt." Anzu added on.

"Indeed." Dr. Brisbane looked back at us. "It is that very mystery that led Yugi's grandfather and I halfway around the world in search of its origins!"

But when they entered, Dr. Brisbane was the only one to come back out. Yikes. I hoped Grandpa was ok.

We all had to stick close for when we entered the Pyramid. The traps made that abundantly clear. From sharp needles in the floor, collapsing stairs, deep pits with spikes and even a dark and dusty tunnel, this pyramid was chock full of surprises. I agreed with Anzu's question of how he knew this pyramid so well despite only having gone through it once. Now I was getting suspicious.

I kept my eyes and ears peeled as we continued on, eventually reaching a split off room. There were two stairwells, one that went up and one that went down. Dr. Brisbane explained that he and Grandpa split up in their initial search of the pyramid. When the man came back down from the upper level, Grandpa wasn't there to greet him. He then found the lower staircase and found Grandpa's bandana there. Following that clue, we all walked down the stairs to reach the largest room yet.

"Hey, doc!" Honda huffed. "Didja forget to mention there's a room the size of Cleveland down here?"

How would he know how large Cleveland was? I didn't but… huh?

"And check out the floor!" Anzu gasped. "It looks like a map or something!"

Sure enough, there was… From the darkness of the room, it was hard to see what it was of. The only thing I could truly make out was the splashes of blue water at an edge.

"Yeah!" Yugi agreed. "But of what?"

"Let's stop standing around and look for him!" Jounouchi barked before racing down the last bit of stairs and into the room.

We all called for him to wait but it was too late. The moment he stepped on one of the tiles of the map, he was sucked inside with a blast of light. What the heck was… We dashed to the side of the map but I stopped a few feet back. The magic rolling off this thing was immense. It sent pulses out all around the room with it faintly reaching outside.

This was the thing keeping the pyramid in pristine condition. But what was it?

"Well, according to my research," Dr. Brisbane suddenly jumped in, "this pyramid is supposed to contain some sort of ancient game."

That would definitely lure Grandpa here. But I would have stayed far away from it. There was no excitement in me now. I just wanted to get away.

I was then grabbed by the arm.

"You're coming with us!" Honda cheered.

"What?!" I gasped.

I had no choice but to jump onto the map with Anzu, Yugi and Honda. I was only able to let out a squeak before we all were sucked inside the small map tile.

**Yami Bakura: Cheese galore. **

**Shaddup! I thought it was really good!**

**Yami Bakura: ... and cheesy. **

**Shut up!**


	14. Sealed Away

**I come bearing more cheese! The holidays are approaching and I don't have a PS 5 secured. *Sigh* oh well, I'll save up more to get one later. I continue to hope you all are doing well and staying safe! **

***I don't own Yu-gi-Oh! I only own my OC, Christine. If you recognize anything, I don't it either.***

We hit the ground with a painful thud. At least I landed on my butt rather than on my head.

"Owwww…" I whined as I sat up, rubbing at my lower back. "A little warning next time, Honda."

"Sorry…" Honda managed back. "Got excited."

I accepted his apology but was still very much sore from the harsh landing. My head was also starting to ache. Ick! This sucks!

"Where are we?" Anzu asked, still rubbing at her tailbone.

I looked up to see we were surrounded by trees again. We were in another forest? I'm getting sick of trees if I was being honest. I went to stand up but bonked into some rather large and cumbersome on my forearm. Anzu must have noticed it as well as she questioned it aloud. It looked like a silly blaster. What was it though? There was even an addition to my outfit of a belt with large circles on it. A holster for lots of… things? Am I Batman now? No one had an answer so we started on our trek to find Jounouchi and Grandpa.

We walked down the beaten path, each of us calling out for Jounouchi or Grandpa. There was no sign of either of them. Just trees for what seemed like miles.

"So, I think maybe we need a plan other than yelling their names." Honda suggested.

"Maybe we should look for clues or something?"

Yugi then elbowed me, pointing to something on the ground. It was a large stone capsule of some kind.

"That would definitely count as a clue." I replied.

Anzu and Honda both turned to look at the capsule on the ground. There were even more of them laying around the sides of the path. How come I didn't see them before? I watched as Yugi reached out to touch it but Honda's voice stopped us.

"I hear something." Honda breathed.

I tried to focus on my ears but nothing hit me. Anzu and Yugi agreed that they heard nothing. Honda then got onto the ground; his ear pressed to the dirt. "It's getting closer." I still didn't hear anything. I was concerned for Honda's mental status until I saw the large bouncing beetles headed right for us.

"It's definitely not nothing!" Yugi gasped.

"Run!"

We all turned tail and ran further into the forest. The bouncing only got louder as they got closer. I was definitely not liking how this trip was turning out.

"I recognize those things! They're from the Capsule Monsters Board Game!"

We ran a few yards more until a large Mantis stepped into our path. I gave a shriek from the surprise. "That looks familiar too!"

"Let's not stay and reminisce!"

I don't know how but, when the Mantis swung its large claws, our small group was separated. Honda had taken Anzu while Yugi had taken me and we were both headed different directions. The Mantis stayed following Yugi and I while the beetles chased Anzu and Honda. Now we had to look for even more people!

I could hear as the Mantis cut down trees behind us, hoping to catch our clothes or skin. With a tug of my hand, Yugi and I plunged into the cold river next to the path we had turned down. The current of the river was strong, strong enough that I lost my grip on him and was sent away downstream. The current was strong but I fought as hard as I could so that I wasn't pulled underwater. When I could finally pull myself out of the water, I was cold and absolutely soaking. Thankfully, my bag was magically waterproof so all my stuff would be safe.

But now I was alone.

"Yugi!" I cried into the forest. "Yugi!"

Nothing. "Ok. Time to be brave, Christine. Hunt for your friend. The river couldn't have taken him far." Taking comfort from that, I did my best to dry off and walk down river.

It was utterly hot now. The river water wasn't cooling anymore. It wasn't like this when I was with the others. I fanned myself but that brought no relief. I even tried to settle a cold hand over my forehead but it only felt even hotter. That was when I noticed it. The normal chill of my hands and skin was gone. I tried to create a snowflake, thinking I was just going a little crazy from the heat, but nothing appeared. I then felt the familiar block of my powers but this time… it felt more secure than ever. The last time something like this happened… I quickly shook off the thoughts. I didn't have time to think about this. I had to find Yugi!

Well… my task was getting harder the longer I walked. I was starting to get achy and my vision was beginning to spin. Could it really be happening again? There was no emotional block this time! Why was this happening?! Unable to walk anymore, I slid down against a tree. I was sweating bullets now.

**_Christine…_**

I looked up at the sound of my name but saw nothing around.

"Who…?"

**_There are better places to take a nap than on the ground, you know?_**

I knew that voice… It was Isis'. I gave a scoff.

"Who made you a comedian?"

**_You did, darling. Now get up, you have to keep moving._**

I was amazed I could shake my head in response.

"I can't… It's worse… My powers…"

Isis' lack of reply made it very clear she knew exactly what was going on. I tried to get up on my own but my head kept spinning the moment I moved to get my feet under me. "I need help…" A hand was then placed on the top of my head.

**_You don't have to ask, darling. I don't know what is causing this nor can I hold it back forever but I know you'll find a way to keep it at bay until you escape._**

The heat and dizziness then retreated; the hand disappearing just as quickly as it had come. I could feel it at the edges of my mind but I was free enough to move. I quickly got to my feet, not wanting to waste what time I was given, and continued to search for Yugi.

"Thank you, Isis."

There was no response but I'm sure she heard me.

I walked for ages, calling out Yugi's name. There was no response. I hoped he was ok. I only stopped when there was movement behind me. I stopped dead, not wanting to turn around. What on earth could be behind me? I took a deep breath after gathering my courage and peeked over my shoulder. Shuddering out of the woods was a large creature of some kind but I didn't want to get a good look at it. That was my cue to leave! I turned back around to dash away again but the slice of a sword stopped me. I turned back to see the shadow had disappeared and what was now walking out of the woods was the token monster of the first deck I had ever created. "Getsu Fuhma?"

The redhaired female samurai was sheathing her katana as she approached. I was so confused now. How was she -. Wait… Yugi recognized the monsters chasing us as pieces on that board game he and Anzu had been playing. Was Getsu Fuhma one of those monsters? I said nothing as she approached and watched as she gave a deep bow.

"You are a hard woman to find, mistress." The monster said in a firm voice.

I immediately huffed.

"Well… What do you want me to do?! I had to find Yugi!"

The monster said nothing else to berate me – the quirk of her lips betraying her amusement. She simply moved so that she could walk alongside me.

"Then let us search for him. I do not think he is far; I heard the noises of battle as I followed you."

That didn't bode well. There was no argument from me as we walked further into the woods. By the third turn, I could hear the sounds of battle, as well as the sounds of something burning. I could also smell some smoke. A tree was burning? I tried to turn the last corner but Getsu Fuhma stopped me. "Wait here." I didn't argue. Once she was gone, I peeked as she stepped into the clearing where the smoke smell was most prevalent. There were more monsters here!

Celtic Guardian seemed to be catching his breath while a giant fire ball was quite pleased with himself based on the large smile on the fiery face. In the center of it all was Yami. He was looking around as if to see if there was more danger. He turned around just as Getsu Fuhma came into view. I couldn't let her attack him!

"Wait!"

The monster stopped dead as I ran past her and over to Yami. "Yami!" The spirit's expression softened into relief.

"There you are!" He breathed as he wrapped me up in a tight hug. "Where have you been?"

"Looking for you, duh!"

There was another sigh but it wasn't of annoyance, just more relief. I pulled away from him to look over the monsters nearby. "And I see that you've made some new friends."

"And so have you."

I gave a laugh, looking back at Getsu Fuhma. She was still looking very concerned but she didn't pull out her sword. "Mereret…" I looked back to my boyfriend, his face now a steel wall of concern. "Are you ok?" I tilted my head in confusion. "Your face is all red. I've barely said anything to make you blush." Of course Yami would notice immediately. He was good at noticing when something was wrong. "Mereret…"

"We can't worry about me right now. We have to find the others."

Yami obviously didn't like dropping the conversation but he did so when I gave a quiet 'please'. He acquiesced rather easily in fact. He gave Yugi control again and we excused our monsters. It was wild that I was holding the redhaired samurai in the palm of my hand. After doing all that, we raced back into the forest. A large lightning crash sent us hurtling down another path. Hopefully that was one of our friends kicking butt and not something kicking theirs.

We made our way down a path that reached a large beach. Based on the bits of debris, this was where the lightning strike hit. Laying in the sand was Anzu and Honda. "Hey!" I dashed over to see if they were ok. They were both breathing so that was a relief. There were a few scrapes and bruises but nothing terrible.

"Don't worry!" A chirpy familiar voice cried. "They just needed a little rest is all!"

Yugi and I both turned to see Grandpa. His hair was an absolute mess but he was smiling away like we had bumped into him at the store. "Howdy! Know where I can find a headband around here?" Yugi jumped into his grandfather's arms immediately.

"Don't you ever do that to me again!" Yugi snapped at him.

Grandpa only laughed at the treatment. Thank goodness. Grandpa was ok! I had never been so relieved before.

Now we only had to find Jounouchi.

When Anzu and Honda woke up, we all moved to set up camp in a seemingly safe spot. Honda and Yugi even set up a fire to keep us warm. Not like I was having trouble with that. My fever was starting to come back; Isis' gift was starting to fade. By dark, I was absolutely miserable.

"So we entered the pyramid and," Anzu was explaining to grandpa what had happened, "long story short, we were here."

"Same with me." Grandpa replied. "The important thing is that we're all together now."

"Not all." Yugi jumped in. "Jounouchi got here first which means he's still out there!"

"I hope he's having more fun than we are." Anzu hummed.

That made Honda huff.

"Well it's his fault we're stuck here." Honda huffed.

"Honda!"

I wanted to be as mad as Honda but my spinning head let me say nothing. The two tried to comfort Yugi some more and I felt bad that I couldn't help. The frustration bubbled inside me until I felt tears prick at my eyes; the liquid brought no relief. What knocked me out of my stupor for a moment was Jounouchi falling out of the sky and being caught by Baby Dragon right in front of Anzu's face.

Jounouchi then proceeded to eat through the loaves of bread that we had. He was the one to bring up my quietness.

"What's up with Christine?" Jounouchi asked, mouth full of food. "She's being too quiet."

"That's what I'd like to know too." Yugi agreed.

I gave a sigh, not saying anything. Grandpa gave the hum that I have equated with 'Talk' but I didn't. All eyes moved to Honda as he jumped to his feet.

"Alright!" Honda barked. "Since Nurse Christine is out of commission, Dr. Honda will now take –"

He tried to touch my forehead but stopped a few inches away as if he was scalded even that far away. "What the… She's burning up!" That sent panic roiling through the campsite. Honda then touched my forehead. "She's practically on fire! Sweating bullets too!" I hated the absolute panic in Yugi's eyes. This is what I wanted to avoid…

"Anyone have a thermometer?" Anzu asked.

Grandpa had one in his bag and he handed it as well as a couple of covers to Anzu. "Here." Still not saying anything, I popped the thermometer in my mouth. While we waited for the thermometer to finish, the gang tried to talk strategy in how to get out. Yami came out quickly, adjusting so that I could lean into his shoulder. It was still hot but it was comforting.

"It may have been simple for us to arrive in this world but I have a bad feeling that leaving is going to be a bit more challenging." Yami explained.

"Why's that?" Jounouchi asked.

"For one: we don't know our way around here. And, there's something else: as strange as this sounds, I have a theory that we've become a part of some sort of real-life version of the Capsule Monsters board game and the only way out may be to win. But this place is enormous! And navigating through it might present a bit of a problem. Plus…"

I felt Yami look down at me. Great… I was being a hamper on the whole operation. I hid my face as best as I could. Jounouchi took my silence as a moment to pull out a map. Based on what Grandpa said, it was the same one from the pyramid. The thermometer then beeped and all eyes were back to me.

"And the number is….?" Honda breathed.

Yami took the thermometer and read out '98.6'.

"What?!" Anzu gasped. "That's a normal body temperature!"

"Not for Christine it isn't." Grandpa interjected.

All eyes went to him. "I was there for a majority of her physical to get into your school and her body temperature is a lot lower than a 98.6. I had been asked to keep an eye on her temperature those first few days after she arrived in my care. On any given day, it's a high 95 at best." I remembered that. The old man stared at me after the doctor not so subtly requested he kept an eye on me like he was expecting me to freeze solid at a touch.

"That's so low!"

"It gets worse. Since 95 is her base temperature, a 98 like that is a fever."

Yami's hand then lifted to my forehead, remaining there; he then put the thermometer into my bag for safe keeping. I didn't argue with him as he was actually pretty cold despite being near the fire so I moved to keep his hand at my skin.

"Well… What do we do?!" Jounouchi barked. "We can't leave her!"

There was silence at that. The dark side of my brain tried to suggest that I was left behind but Anzu perking up stopped it from coming out of my mouth.

"I have an idea!" She shrieked, popping one of her capsules into her gauntlet.

Out popped Happy Lover who immediately looked around for a threat. "Ok, little bud! If you can heal monsters, can you also help people?" The monster tilted on its large wings before nodding. "Ok! Let's try it!" There was a soft noise and the heat slowly began to recede. It was rumbling in the back of my head but it was far enough away that I could sit up. "Yes! It worked!" I gave her a smile as she returned Happy Lover to its capsule.

"Thanks, Anzu." I said. "Sorry for the scare."

"But what's going on?" Yami jumped in. "Were you hurt in the chase earlier?"

I shook my head, averting my eyes from him. "Mereret…." Ooooohhh… Darn it… I went to open my mouth to speak when a rustle stopped me. We all looked around but saw nothing there. Only a large array of pink to purple flowers.

"Uh… When did those flowers get here?" Anzu then asked.

"They weren't here when we hunkered down…" I added on.

"Come on!" Jounouchi tried to reason with us. "Flowers don't just appear out of nowhere!"

"Well, apparently in this world, they do!" Anzu snapped back.

I was able to jump to my feet thankfully, throwing my bag over my shoulder. Yami had his eyes narrowed on the flowers.

"We seem to be surrounded!" He growled.

"Look!"

I watched as glowing eyes popped out from the roots of the large moving flowers. That's not normal!

"I say we ask questions later!" Jounouchi huffed as he threw a lit stick that had been in the fire.

The flaming stick flew for a second and I watched as the flowers moved to avoid it. Illuminated by the small blaze, the small dog like bodies that carried the flowers gave an even louder growl. Great…

"What do we do?!"

"We play the game!" Yami replied.

He loaded one of his capsules into his gauntlet and fired out Celtic Guardian. Jounouchi and Honda responded with Baby Dragon and Thunderkid themselves. Seeing Grandpa unable to summon his monster and Anzu only had a healer, I decided I had to play as well. I popped out Getsu Fuhma's capsule and fired it as well.

It was insanity from then on. I had to keep an eye on myself as well as my monster and my friends. Getsu Fuhma sliced through dog after dog as fast as she could, jumping to me whenever one got too close. I felt the pain the others had when I sent her over to help Celtic Guardian when he was nearly overwhelmed; a dog had jumped onto her back and went right for her neck. The pain was so intense I nearly fainted from it. I was kept on my feet by Yami, who gripped onto my waist with the strength of a python. "We need to blind them long enough to escape!" He then called for Celtic Guardian to toss his sword into the air where Thunderkid blasted it. It would definitely blind those dogs enough long enough that we could high tail it out of there.

It was only when we stopped that I realized that the rest of the gang had left their bags behind. They all had snacks in them but mine didn't… I gave a heaving sigh at that. At least Happy Lovers' healing power was holding on. Yugi and Grandpa were seated on the roots of the nearby tree while Anzu and I were standing. Jounouchi and Honda were collapsed on the ground.

"The next time I see a garden with man eating wolves growing out of it, I'll know exactly what to do!"

"Yeah." Honda mused. "Blind them, then run for your life!"

"Bingo!"

Jounouchi's head then perked up. His smile turned near insane as he jumped to his feet.

"Hey!" He exclaimed. "We just won a fight!"

Honda got the same smile on his face and jumped up as well.

"Victory Dance!"

They started on a little parody of the Can-Can before collapsing a bit on themselves.

"So… What exactly was that?" Anzu asked.

"Whenever we kick some can…" Jounouchi began.

"We do a victory dance!" Honda finished.

They went back into their parody, complete with the kicking. I couldn't stop my laughter, both at the hilarity of my two friends and the absolute confusion on Anzu's face. I didn't see Yugi looking over at me, almost like he was concerned.

By the end of their song, they had fallen back to the ground. The suddenness made me stop laughing.

"Guys?" Anzu called to them. "Are you ok?"

"Say something!" Yugi called out as well.

I was laughing again when their stomachs growled loudly. Those boys and their stomachs. They didn't like it when Grandpa said they could last weeks without food so they started to race off to find food, calling out something about Finders Keepers. They didn't get far as they both bumped into branches and fell back to the ground. I followed at Anzu, Yugi and Grandpa went to walk over to them. I couldn't listen to the sudden argument as Grandpa quietly handed me a bag of crackers.

"After you." He said.

I took them with a quiet thanks, happy to finally get something in my stomach. Anzu then teased the hungry boys by being handed her own bag of chips. Jounouchi and Honda were practically salivating at the sight. "Can of baked beans?" He offered the can to Yugi who took it with a smile.

"Don't mind if I do!" Yugi chirped in reply.

"You had a bag of food all along?!" Both Jounouchi and Honda barked.

"I never said I didn't." Grandpa innocently replied. "All you boys had to do was ask nicely."

"Pretty please!"

They never did get their food as Yugi noticed a sound. Then Jounouchi noticed the mountain that was moving. I was pretty sure mountains didn't move… so were we? I stuffed the back of crackers back into grandpa's bag and followed after Yugi and the rest of the gang.

Jounouchi and Honda nearly ran so fast that they fell off the side of the island. Which was a couple dozen feet from the water!

"Seems peaceful enough now!" Jounouchi breathed.

Something breaking through the water seemed to correct him immediately. "I stand corrected!" When the water finally broke completely, a giant turtle's head had appeared out of the water.

"This isn't just an island, it's an island turtle!" Yugi gasped.

I froze when the turtle looked back at us, like a mom did at her kids making noises in the back seat of a car. Jounouchi and Honda tried to threaten it but Yugi stopped them. The two considered it a victory and began another victory dance. Anzu and I both sighed.

"We need more female friends." Anzu sighed.

"And I agree with you." I nodded my head.

We were all spooked when the turtle gave a loud roar of almost disapproval.

"Something tells me he's not a fan of your song!" Yugi gasped.

"Well who asked?!" Jounouchi huffed back.

There was a loud rumble and the island shook dramatically. I noticed that the water was steadily rising now. Oh boy… Our turtle friend was going for a dip!

"Land ho!"

"Abandon ship!"

I was nervous with jumping into the water with my, even low grade, fever but I had no choice. It was this or drown! I chose jumping. The water was freezing but thankfully we weren't pulled away from each other like Yugi and I had been in the river.

"He left us high and dry…" Anzu muttered.

"No! He left us low and wet!"

"Well, at least we're not stranded!" Honda then called out before an argument could appear. "It looks like that turtle tossed us towards a tremendous temple!"

I heard Jounouchi mumble about saying that five times fast… I tried and I only ended up making myself confused. The temple Honda was talking about was a crumbling white building with large minarets, some of the crumbling or broken entirely. Not exactly a very inviting place.

We waded through the water a little before hitting the sand of the beach. Gods, I was cold and it wasn't a refreshing feeling.

"We're not going in there, are we?!" Anzu bemoaned.

The large wooden door opened then.

"Well it seems like someone wants us to."

"So now what?" Jounouch asked.

Yami came out then, his hand gently pressing to my back to help me through the last few feet of water.

"Follow me." He said. "If we truly have become part of some ancient game, then we need to play along if we expect to escape."

Nobody argued with that. I stayed in the back of the group with Anzu and Grandpa but I immediately noticed the large golden lamp that was settled nicely at the back of the temple. That's not good.

And then the doors shut behind us.

"Brilliant!" I hissed angrily.

"Why am I not surprised!" Honda added on.

We all looked back to the lamp as it sat innocently on the small dais.

"So… what's up with the giant tea pot?" Jounouchi asked.

"That's no tea pot." Yami corrected. "Stand back!"

Out of the spout of the lamp, a green mist shot up until it created the form of La Jinn, the Genie of the Lamp! He was not a welcome sight to see. None of our monsters could handle him!

Yami then tried to take on the monster by himself! I nearly snapped at him but Jounouchi and Honda beat me to it. I simply went with dirty looks. Celtic Guardian could hit the genie but could do no damage. My dirty looks faded with each hit Yami sustained. The genie, probably seeing my concern, then blew a blast of fire right at me. I ducked at the shout of my name and dashed to a corner of the room where I could hide.

It seemed I ran at just the right time. The doors of the temple opened with a bang as water pounded through. I never thought I could fear the crackling sound of ice as it froze. I screamed as it slid up Anzu and Grandpa's body. I wasn't given much time to stare as La Jinn came back for another crack at me, blowing another spout of flames at me.

"Christine!" I heard Yami cry. "Get out of here!"

I considered it for a second before the large ice monster popped out of a large spout of water. It was effectively blocking the exit.

"Would love to, Yami, but….!" I snapped back.

With another spout of flame sent my way, I was sent on a retreat. Even with Yami distracting him, I was slowly getting surrounded by the flames. "Nek!" My mouth cursed for me. The more I ran, the closer they became. The heat was starting to elevate my fever again as well as my fear but I had to push through; now wasn't the time to cry out and cling to something. When I was pushed against a wall, I finally decided that I had had enough. I was afraid, yes, but I was tired of being chased! Not even caring anymore, I ran towards the flames and leapt through them. I managed to land on a non-burning piece of tile and could run more.

Just as I reached the main section of the temple, both La Jinn and the ice monster were exploding into dust. I gave a dizzy whoop before sliding down the column.

"Mereret!"

Yami helped me back onto my feet and, after checking me over for any injuries, we went to greet the unfrozen Anzu and Grandpa. He let Yugi take control when he was sure I could stand.

"Hey, guys…" Anzu beamed up at us.

"You're alright!" Jounouchi gasped.

"Thanks to you all." Grandpa beamed as well.

The two were helped onto their feet and Anzu came to look me over. She was wonderfully cold! I clung to her as tightly as I could.

"Looks like your fever is back…" Anzu hummed.

"Leaping through a bunch of flames will do that." I replied as clearly as I could.

My friend gave a sigh before placing her freezing hand on my neck. It was wonderful!

There was a loud rumbling sound then from behind us and we all turned, even me! A large tablet was rising from the ground, covered in pristine Egyptian hieroglyphics. If I had a clearer head, I could have attempted to read them but that was out of the question for the moment. We stepped forward to try and see it more clearly.

"Hey, gramps." Jounouchi huffed. "Aren't you the one who always knows how to read this junk?"

Junk?! Anzu stopped me from flopping over to him and smacking some sense into him. Hieroglyphics weren't junk! Grandpa didn't take offense from his words as he stepped closer and read the words.

"Before the shadows blanket the land, go to the Fortress of Fear. Locate the place where the spirits' sleeps and the pathway you seek will appear." Grandpa then tilted his head. "But what does it mean?"

"You're asking us?!"

"Well it says 'before the shadows blanket the land'…" Yugi hummed. "I bet that means sunset! Now if we could only figure out what it means by the phrase 'where the spirits' sleeps'."

"Maybe it's some kind of casket?" Anzu suggested.

"But what about this 'Fortress of Fear?" Grandpa interjected.

Jounouchi then pulled out his map. I could finally look at it this time and I saw the large house like structure they had been talking about before. If we were right on the coast, we had a long way to go if we wanted to reach it, if it really was the Fortress of Fear.

And we didn't have a lot of time until sunset.

Anzu and I spent a little time while the boys searched for a way across the river with Happy Lover as we tried to lower my fever again. This time, though, it didn't lower it as much. I was able to move around again but it wouldn't last for too long. It wouldn't help if we actually had to swim across it. Yugi eventually came back saying that there wasn't even anything resembling a boat.

Honda made my hope come back. We followed him back into the temple to see he had found a hidden tunnel underground. It could have possibly gone under the river and back to the mainland. It was much better than swimming so I agreed immediately.

It was a really long tunnel! I would have thought that we'd be let up on the beach just on the other side of the river but apparently not. I tried not to laugh when Grandpa called out that Motous had really short legs as we were running.

"I see a light!" Jounouchi called.

He lifted up on the small lid covering the end of the tunnel and we all piled out. "Does anyone else find this place creepy?"

"No!" Honda huffed back. "After everything we've been through, it'll take more than a bunch of rocks to creep me out."

"Where are we anyway?" Anzu asked, hands clenched together.

"A graveyard?" I suggested.

Thank goodness Meg wasn't here; I think she'd have a heart attack. I heard Jounouchi rustle with the map for a second.

"As usual, Christine is right!" Jounouchi whined.

"I am?"

The cawing of a bird scared Jounouchi out of his mind then.

"Ghost!"

Ghost? Really, Jounouchi? He was grateful Meg wasn't here to hear him say that; she'd probably kick his butt.

"How about it's a bunch of crows?" Honda huffed again.

He and Anzu began to tease Jounouchi for being scared of nothing while I giggled at his bright red face. The hilarity didn't last long as Yugi and I heard a cackle just over the ridge.

"Anyone else hear a cackle?" I asked.

"I heard it." Yugi replied.

"Could it just have been crows?" Anzu suggested.

"Nah, that was a cackle." I shook my head. "That was most definitely a cackle."

I was a witch for the gods sake! I knew cackling!

"Be cautious just in case." Grandpa interjected.

To be on the safe side, I reached for my Getsu Fuhma capsule. It didn't pull it out for fear that it would cause everything to fall apart but I probably should have. Yami came out with the next cackle.

"Stay close and follow my lead." He ordered gently. "Whatever's out there doesn't sound too friendly."

I blamed the cackles for that.

A couple seconds later, a bunch of zombies and other spirits jumped out from behind the rocks and ridges of the graveyard to surround us. I was really getting tired of this! Now I plopped Getsu Fuhma's capsule into my gauntlet and fired. She took out four zombies with her first swing and I gave a loud whoop. Her special effect worked even here! She even helped Celtic Guardian when he was about to be overrun with them. I gave Yami a bright smile at that before turning back to help Anzu. I was definitely in for a blush later for that.

Eventually, there were just too many of them.

"I think we need some backup!" Anzu suggested.

"I agree!" Jounouchi then dived for the nearest capsule.

The light was blinding but I heard Jounouchi give a laugh when Flame Swordsman popped out. I then noticed Yami grab Anzu out of the grip of one of the zombies that was trying to pop out of the ground. As they slid away, they pressed on two more capsules, releasing Kuriboh and Dark Witch.

"Awesome!" I cheered.

With their help, we were able to clear the zombies with quick efficiency. With the pathway clear, Yami let Yugi take control again before we all raced up the rest of the mountain to where we thought the Fortress was.

My one thought for the way up was 'Why are there so many stairs?!' There were way too many; I thought I was gonna die!

Waiting for us at the top of the hill was a beautiful Ionic style Greek temple. The statues in the pediment weren't painted so I wasn't sure what they were supposed to represent. When you're expecting a fortress, a temple is a bit of a surprise.

"It's amazing!" Anzu gasped.

"Yeah?!" Honda huffed back. "Well, it would have been just as amazing at the bottom of the hill!"

"Amen!" I called back.

"Come on!" Jounouchi tried to cheer us up while still gasping for air himself. "This was a piece of cake!"

"Actually, with our luck," Honda went to agree, "it could have been far worse."

He just had to say something. Just then, a rumble echoed through the ground. We had to jump back a bit before we were hit by a bunch of walls coming out of the ground. They completely enclosed the entirety of the temple! We tried to push the wall down, per Jounouchi's advice, but only succeeding in hurting Grandpa's back again. I glared as Jounouchi had the gall to ask whose idea was it.

We then spent a bit of time trying to find an opening in the walls. The statues at the four corners were beginning to creep me out and I heard Anzu saying the same thing. Jounouchi's next hair brained scheme was to try and fly over the walls. It didn't work as there was apparently an invisible forcefield surrounding it. Good to know. Grandpa then tried to blast the door open with his…. Summon Skull?! WHAT?! Why couldn't I get him?! I could feel Yugi's eyes roll at my dramatics at my favorite Duel Monster. Sadly, even that didn't work.

"I think I know what's going on here!" Yugi then gasped.

He dashed over to where one of the small dots on the entrance wall was lit up. The moment I could see it clearly, it stopped glowing. "Did you all see that!"

"Do you know what this all means?" Anzu asked.

Yugi explained how the small boxes at the corners of the large rectangle on the door were supposed to represent the four statues settled there. Anzu was quick to realize that when all four of the boxes were glowing, we could get in. Sweet! Wait… did they have to keep glowing in order to stay open? Yugi had Grandpa move back to where he had been standing before and in the same position. After a few seconds, the same box lit up again.

Thankfully, I was excused from playing charades with the statues. I was given door duty with Yugi. When all of the lights lit up, the door slid up and out of the way.

"You go in, Yugi!" I told him. "I'll stay out here and keep watch.

"You sure?" Yugi asked.

"Course! I can handle myself after all!"

He gave me a look of hesitation before nodding and dashing inside the temple. "Touch nothing but the lamp!" I cried after him, hearing a laugh. I gave a giggle once he was gone.

"Christine?" I heard Grandpa call from where he was standing in front of his statue.

I stepped over, thinking he needed some help, but had actually just walked into an interrogation. "What is going on?" I flinched and looked away. "Don't pull that with me, young lady. All of us are worried." I gave a sigh and spilled the beans.

"This place… It's somehow locked away my powers."

"Has this ever happened before?"

I gave a nod of my head.

"I've told the gang about it but… it was never this bad."

Grandpa remained silent so I continued to speak. "An emotional block had sealed away my powers when I was in middle school. Every day was a little fever and lots of frustration. This time…" I lifted my hand like my snowflake would appear. "The fevers are high enough that I'm dizzy; I collapsed while trying to find Yugi. Something about this place has seen to it that the block is stronger than ever. I don't know why…"

"If I may approach a theory…"

I said nothing to stop him. "That battle at the temple. There was a fire monster and an ice monster." He didn't have to remind me of that; I had no trouble remembering it. "From what the boys said, they had to use their powers against the other in order to succeed." That made me think of something.

"Are you saying that my powers were sealed so that we couldn't cheat in that one thing?"

"I wouldn't put it past the person who has made these already complicated rules."

I gave a hum. Great… For one little section, I was at risk of overheating via fever. "Don't worry, Christine. We will get out of here." I smiled at the elderly man, thankful for his words, before I walked back to the door to wait for Yugi.

It was a few minutes after that something went wrong. I heard Jounouchi fall over from across the Fortress and the sounds of crumbling rock took over my ears then. That wasn't good. I turned to see the statue that Grandpa was standing in front of start to move, the rock combining together to make it one living thing.

While everyone else summoned their monsters, I kept mine back so that she was ready for anything. I regretted that quickly as all of the monsters summoned were getting their butts whuped. The moment I reached for my capsule a bright light appeared from the top of the Fortress. I looked up but could see nothing. Then, from the corners were the monsters all were, another dark red light appeared. It took a couple of seconds but they all began to crumble. Grandpa tried to have Summon Skull take it out but accidentally got his monster destroyed.

Aw… There went my favorite monster.

I snapped myself out of that, this was hardly the time to mourn, and dashed over to the elderly man. He gave soft groans of pain from the destruction of his monster and I did my best to help. When the rest of the gang came over, we helped him up and into the temple. Yugi had done it! The large casket inside the large room had been opened and a piece of golden armor was floating out of it. It was adjusting so that it was almost a portal, like an Illuvian!

"Yugi!" Jounouchi cried.

The boy turned around. "Gramps' monster got smashed by one of those statue freaks!"

"Oh no!" Yugi gasped.

Grandpa shook out of my grip and made his way carefully up the dais with Yugi.

"We've got more important things to worry about!" Grandpa huffed. "Like deciphering this message!"

The old man read it over for a moment before reading aloud. "Pass through this doorway and thy journey shall start. Five trials will follow to test thy heart. But I warn you, this journey is not for the weak, only a true warrior can unearth what you seek." The moment he finished, the armor glowed and flew to settle onto Yugi's body. Looks like it'll be hard to hug my friend and boyfriend for a while.

"What's up with the armored vest?" Honda asked.

"Whatever that thing is: I have to say it's quite the fashion statement." Anzu added on.

"Don't you see what's going on here?!" Grandpa snapped at us. "It mentioned a true warrior! So you can't enter without that armor!"

The look on Yugi's face would have been laughable had it been a better time. Right now, he looked horrified.

"What?!" Yugi gasped. "This is crazy, guys! I'm not a warrior!"

"Yugi, please! Taking this journey is our only way of escaping!"

Yugi still looked concerned as Jounouchi jumped up the dais.

"He's right, Yuge!" Jounouchi cheered. "Let's do this!"

Yugi stared at his friend like he was insane.

"Are you sure?" Yugi asked.

"Of course not but what the hey, right?"

I giggled at that. Jounouchi was quite the spirit raiser.

"Oh well…" Honda gave a playful sigh. "What are you gonna do? To tell you the truth, it wouldn't be normal if we weren't on some crazy adventure anyway!"

"That's right!" Anzu cheered then. "Let's go out there and do what we do our thing!"

Yugi didn't agree just yet. I was elbowed by him then. Was he expecting me to talk too? The expectant eyebrow said yes. I gave a playful sigh but did.

"Even with a raging fever, you aren't getting rid of me that easily." I then gave a tease. "So, get moving, warrior boy!"

There was an eyeroll at that but Yugi did nod. We all followed behind as Yugi stepped through the glowing portal.

**Got anything to say? **

**Yami Bakura through chomps of extra cheesy nachos: Nope.**

**Good.**

**Yami Bakura: Was cheesy though. **

**All right! *Grabs a frying pan* Get over here!**


End file.
